


I'll Stay By Your Side

by SpaceJammie



Series: Oddly Specific First Meetings Fic Collection [3]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Akaashi Keiji & Kozume Kenma Friendship, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Ghosts, Alternate Universe - Psychics/Psionics, Bokuaka - Freeform, Bokuto Koutarou & Kuroo Tetsurou Friendship, First Meetings, Getting Together, Getting to Know Each Other, KuroKen - Freeform, M/M, Precognition, Psychic Abilities, Skateboarding, Spirits, Telekinesis, Teleportation, There are references to death of characters that happened in the past, This Is Not Going To Go The Way You Think, Undercover Hero Work
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-18
Updated: 2020-12-27
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:55:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 23
Words: 28,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26533963
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpaceJammie/pseuds/SpaceJammie
Summary: Akaashi and Kenma are best friends with psychic powers.When Akaashi saves a stranger from a plane crash, he ends up getting more than he bargained for: a boyfriend.But Bokuto seems to be in danger more than a normal person. Will Akaashi be able to figure out why that is and put a stop to it?
Relationships: Akaashi Keiji/Bokuto Koutarou, Azumane Asahi/Nishinoya Yuu, Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru, Kozume Kenma/Kuroo Tetsurou, Sawamura Daichi/Sugawara Koushi, Shimizu Kiyoko/Tanaka Ryuunosuke
Series: Oddly Specific First Meetings Fic Collection [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1982089
Comments: 203
Kudos: 284
Collections: maazesfini





	1. Did That Just Happen?

Bokuto and Kuroo were in an airplane together. They were on their way home after spending a couple weeks with their friend Yaku, who had moved to Russia to play volleyball. They tried to keep in touch with all their old volleyball friends, and that included going to Russia once a year. They always went right before their college semester started. 

Both of the men were 22 years old. They had one more year left of college, and their first class was the next day. That wasn't ideal; they'd be struggling with jetlag from their vacation. Not to mention the fact that Bokuto wouldn't be able to sleep during the flight because he got too nervous about the possibility of a plane crash. 

Kuroo, on the other hand, could sleep anywhere as long as he had a way to cover his eyes and put pillows over his ears. He liked it as dark and quiet as possible. At the current moment, he was trying to get to sleep. 

But that was hard to do thanks to Bokuto, who was fidgeting and mildly disturbing those around him with his loud complaints. "These seats are uncomfortable. Doesn't it seem like they keep getting smaller? I'm smashed, and I'm getting nauseous. And my head hurts. Tetsurou, are you listening?" 

"You're the one who wanted the window seat, Kou. Stop being so loud," said Kuroo. He adjusted his two neck pillows around his shoulders so that his head was better sandwiched between them. It was clear that he wanted Bokuto to leave him alone so he could sleep.

"Tetsurou…" Bokuto tried to whisper. "Doesn't the plane feel unsteady?" He was shaking one of Kuroo's arms as he spoke. 

"Planes crash less often than cars do. Just put on your headphones, zone into some music, and let me rest," Kuroo mumbled, already half asleep. He gently brushed Bokuto's hand off his arm. 

Bokuto frowned deeply. It was too bright outside, so he knew he wouldn't be able to sleep like Kuroo. Not that he could have even if it was dark. 

There was only about an hour left of their flight. Bokuto decided to take Kuroo's advice and put on his headphones, setting his playlist to shuffle. The music did seem to help calm him; he ended up smiling and looking outside his window. 

About 45 minutes passed, and he was totally zoned out as he let his imagination run away with the music. 

He had his face pressed against the window and was watching as land started to come into view up ahead. As he saw the land growing closer, he tapped his fingers and feet along to the beat of his music. It almost felt like the plane was shaking along to the current song that was playing. That made Bokuto feel kind of happy. 

That is, until he saw an engine outside his window blow up and take off the farthest half of the wing. 

Bokuto's heart started racing and his eyes opened wide; he stared out his window in horror. Other people around him hadn't seemed to notice the disaster yet, despite the way the explosion had shaken the plane. Bokuto started smacking Kuroo's chest while keeping his eyes glued outside. 

Kuroo pushed Bokuto's hand away a few times, but Bokuto kept bringing his hand back to push Kuroo more.

Finally, Kuroo pulled off his mask and snapped at Bokuto. "What, dude?! What's so fucking important that it couldn't wait?" 

Bokuto moved his head back and pointed outside the window.

Kuroo grouchily leaned over his friend to look out the window. His expressions froze as he took in the fact that the plane was missing half a wing. He rubbed his eyes and couldn't believe it was real; he hoped this was just a weird dream, caused by Bokuto's fears influencing him before he went to sleep. 

Bokuto moved Kuroo's face over so that they could both look out the window and stare at the broken wing. On the bright side, there wasn't an active fire out there. Or at least, not a very big one. The engine that had exploded went down with the part of the wing that fell off. It had taken most of the flames along with it. 

But, on the downside, the plane started to roll to the right. The weight of the undamaged wing was pulling down that side of the plane, and it seemed like they were starting to lose altitude. The two men lost sight of the water and distant land as their side of the plane rolled up towards the sky. 

As everyone in the plane started to scream, Bokuto noticed something small coming toward the plane; it was moving very quickly. As the small dark dot came closer, Bokuto realized that it was a man.

A man on what looked like a skateboard, riding it through the air. He jumped off the board, which fell once he was no longer on it, and then he landed right on top of Bokuto's window. He had black hair and was wearing black pants, a black hoodie and even black shoes. The only thing he wore that was not black was a white kitsune mask with gold accent paint. 

Bokuto and Kuroo looked at each other; they were thinking the same thing. _Is this really happening? Are we losing our fucking minds right now?_

They looked back outside and saw that the man had stood up over the window. He was pressing hard against the broken wing with his palms. They could tell that he was straining his body by his stance and the fact that his arms were shaking slightly from exertion. 

To their even greater surprise, the plane started to slowly even out. It took just a couple minutes before it was completely level again. The masked man remained in what was now a push up position, with his hands on top of the remaining part of the wing. His feet were planted on either side of Bokuto's window. 

Bokuto could see that the man's legs and arms were shaking badly at that point. Somewhere in his mind, he thought it made sense that the man was fatigued; the man somehow pressed the plane back over with just his bare hands.

As soon as the plane was over land, it began a sudden and sharp descent. Many people started screaming again at that point. But Bokuto had a feeling that everything was going to be okay, even though he was terrified. As the plane got closer to the ground, the descent slowed and leveled out. 

Bokuto could see sweat soaking through the man's clothes. He wondered how the man had controlled the plane, and hoped that his rescuer was going to be okay. The man's body was still trembling. 

Finally, the plane came to a complete stop and was then gently set down on the ground in a field. 

As soon as the plane was safely set down, the man outside Bokuto's window collapsed onto the wing he had been pressing on. He didn't move at all after that. Bokuto and Kuroo stared out at him, both wearing concerned expressions. 

"We need to go see if he's okay," Bokuto said as he was about to stand up. 

But before Bokuto could move, there was suddenly a second man on the wing; he was kneeling down next to the collapsed man. The second man was also dressed in all black, and had a mask on as well. But instead of a white kitsune mask, he had a black cat mask with red accent paint. There was some blonde hair framing his face, covering the sides of his mask. Dark roots could be seen on the top of his head.

The man in the cat mask leaned down and pulled the seemingly unconscious man into his arms. Before Kuroo and Bokuto could blink again, both of the strange men had disappeared. It was like they had vanished into thin air. 

"What the fuck did I just see," Kuroo said as he collapsed back into his seat. 

Bokuto continued to gaze out the window, looking around the ground and the sky. He wanted to make sure the man with the kitsune mask was okay. He wondered where the two masked men had disappeared to, and if he would ever see them again. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I went back through this fic at the end of December(2020) to fill in some plot holes I missed and to change the fic a bit so it could be T rated, rather than M rated.


	2. Teleport Home

Kenma and Akaashi appeared in their living room

Kenma had made them teleport close enough to the couch that he was able to easily help Akaashi lay down. He silently removed his friend's mask before removing his own, setting both on the coffee table. Then he sighed in a very ‘I knew this was going to happen’ kind of way while giving Akaashi a disapproving look.

"It was just like your vision, Kenma. One of the wings had split right in half," Akaashi said weakly. He was out of breath and barely conscious; he had really overdone it this time.

"My visions are always accurate," Kenma mumbled dryly. He went to the fridge and then brought a bottle of water back with him. He sat on the coffee table while holding the bottle towards Akaashi.

Akaashi took the water and drank it down quickly, then laid back and closed his eyes. His whole body was aching and he just wanted to sleep. But he really needed to take a shower before doing that.

Kenma's voice was both irritated and concerned. "That was too much for you, Keiji. You're going to hurt yourself doing stupid stuff like that. We should’ve gone with my plan."

With great effort, Akaashi leaned up on one elbow to look at Kenma. "So you think it would have been better to have you transport people from the plane one at a time, and risk not getting everyone out?"

Kenma sighed and leaned back over the coffee table, resting his weight on his hands. "It would have been easier on you to wait just above the water until the plane hit, rather than move and carry the entire thing to land. You'd have been able to keep the plane afloat while I worked on teleporting anyone left inside."

"That's assuming no one died from the force of the impact. You know I can't move something of that size, let alone slow it down, unless I'm touching it." Akaashi's voice was edged with frustration, though it was more directed at the limits of his own ability rather than at Kenma's plan.

Kenma set his lips in a hard line as he stared at his friend, tilting his head just slightly. It was his ‘you might be right, but I’m not going to admit it’ look.

Akaashi took a deep breath and returned to a neutral tone of voice. "My way worked just fine, and I don't think anyone saw me. Even if someone did see, no one would believe the story. It would just be blamed on panic induced hallucinations.”

Kenma was still silently studying Akaashi, refusing to give input.

Akaashi sighed and continued talking. “If we’d have done it your way, hundreds of people would be telling stories about it. How they disappeared from inside a plane and appeared on land that was miles away. That might’ve made it onto the news, don't you agree?"

Kenma looked at his best friend closely as he thought about the man’s words. Akaashi's eyes were slightly bloodshot from the strain of moving the plane, and sweat had soaked through his clothes. It had been the most reckless rescue that Akaashi had ever pulled off.

He knew that Akaashi could never ignore people that were in danger; he felt like his friend had a bit of a hero complex. And since Akaashi had the ability to move small items with his mind, and move large objects as long as he was touching them, he often got the chance to play the hero. Not that he ever got credit for it since he always wore a mask.

Kenma sighed again and spoke in a monotone voice. "You should shower, Keiji, and eat something. Maybe rest today, especially if you plan on attending classes tomorrow."

Akaashi willed himself to sit up, then groaned because his muscles were so incredibly sore. Lifting something the weight of a plane was both mentally and physically taxing for him. He wondered if he would be able to walk the next day, let alone focus in class. There was the possibility that he really had overdone it, but he wasn’t going to miss school; he wanted to get better grades this semester.

"Of course I'm going to class tomorrow. It's the first day, it would be irresponsible to skip it," Akaashi said in a serious voice.

Kenma rolled his eyes and picked up his playstation controller, intending to wind down from the morning activities. "Only this responsible for yourself when it comes to attending school?"

Akaashi gave a sarcastic smile. "Not all of us have the ability to predict the stock markets and see the outcomes of investments like you do. I need to finish my education and get a job so I can finally afford my own food."

Kenma was absorbed in his game; he answered without looking at Akaashi. "You know I don't mind feeding you and sheltering you."

"Don't make it sound like I'm a stray you took in. Though, maybe you'd be nicer to me if I was a cat," Akaashi said dryly.

Kenma hummed. "Probably. Cats don't stupidly risk their lives to save others. Can't say the same about you."

After a long sigh, Akaashi finally managed to stand up from the couch; his legs were extremely shaky. "I'm going to rinse off and then soak in the bath for a while,” he said as he slowly walked towards the bathroom.

Kenma spoke without looking away from the tv. "You'll be able to walk tomorrow as long as you take some ibuprofen after your bath, do stretches for an hour, eat a proper meal, and then go right to bed." He had peeked into tomorrow’s future to find the best course of action for Akaashi’s recovery process.

"Thanks for checking on that. I'm going to start to think you're a nice person at this rate," Akaashi said as he slowly moved down the hall. He heard Kenma chuckle behind him. He knew that Kenma cared deeply about him, even if the man could be sharp tongued and sarcastic.


	3. A Brief History

Akaashi and Kenma had known each other since toddlerhood. They had even discovered their psychic abilities around the same time; they were both nine years old. It was within weeks of each other when their powers started to manifest, though they were weak and inconsistent at first.

One day, Akaashi accidentally bent a spoon with just his mind, which was amusingly cliché. He also made a pencil roll off his desk without touching it. He thought it was a fluke or just his imagination, but then he started to be able to move clothes around in the air and make books fall from shelves. It was hard to deny what he was capable of at that point. 

As he practiced his ability, he was able to move more things at a time, as well as heavier objects. It was almost like weight training for his mind. Unfortunately, there seemed to be a limit to what he could move with only his thoughts. But he discovered that if he was touching the object in question, even with just one finger, his mental lifting capacity would increase by tenfold. And he realized that being physically stronger seemed to maximize that, so he started exercising frequently to build muscle. 

Another thing he discovered about his abilities was that the calmer he was, the easier he could lift an object. So he worked on taming his emotions and managing his stress; his goal was to remain rational in the face of any situation. Luck was on his side since he was already a relatively calm child. But that didn’t stop him from reading all kinds of books about anger management, emotional health, and responding rather than reacting to hard situations. He applied those skills to both external stimuli as well as his internal state of mind. 

The way that Kenma discovered one of his two powers was a bit stressful; he unintentionally transported himself away from a vicious dog that was chasing him. The dog had gotten off it’s leash while Kenma was walking to Akaashi’s house, which was just a few blocks away from his own. Kenma bolted away from the animal as fast as he could. Before he knew it, he found himself in his bedroom. The experience really freaked him out. Since he didn’t want to pass by the dog again, and didn’t have any idea how to make himself teleport at will, he decided to call Akaashi on the phone. His friend was the first person he told.

Once he had talked to Akaashi about his teleportation, Kenma then told his parents about it. They thought he was just pretending, so they played along with it in a patronizing way. He decided that it didn’t matter if they believed him or not; he didn’t bring it up to them again.

He wasn't able to intentionally teleport for a long time. It would just happen at random, often in response to a strong emotion such as fear. Somehow, it never happened in front of other people. That was likely Kenma subconsciously protecting himself from being discovered.

His visions of the future started happening right after the first teleportation. They were very frequent and intrusive. At first, it was just small things; what his mom would say before she said it; or what he was getting for his birthday. But it didn’t take long for him to start getting glimpses of the future that were more detailed and serious.

When Akaashi told his parents about his ability, they told him to stop telling lies. He tried to tell them that he was serious and offered to show them what he could do. But they threatened to put him into a psychiatric hospital if he kept ‘acting so delusional.’ He didn’t understand why they were so afraid of the possibility of him having psychic abilities. But he did understand that they were not people who he could safely be himself around, so he didn’t open up to them anymore after that.

After some consideration, the two boys decided to keep their powers hidden. They practiced in secret and worked to increase their control over what they could do. 

By age 16, Kenma could control when and where he teleported. He could also intentionally read short glimpses of the future, though he couldn’t yet block out the unintentional ones; his mind had a constant blur of images flashing through it for many years. He was around 19 when he finally learned how to block out his static visions, as well as transport Akaashi along with himself when teleporting. However, it was tiresome to move an extra person. Kenma avoided it whenever possible.

When Akaashi was 16, he could easily lift something as heavy as a desk with just his mind. He could also move a car across the ground while touching it; though he couldn’t yet lift one all the way up off the ground. That strength would come later.

For an unknown reason, Akaashi couldn't lift anything that was alive, himself included. 

To get around that problem, he would move the clothing people were wearing to pull them aside; he subtly saved many people from minor mishaps using that method. And he eventually figured out that he could lift things that people were sitting in or on. He was 17 when he discovered that he could make things hover while he was on top of them; he was doing skate tricks and ended up floating instead of landing while doing a flip. 

With practice, he could lift the board up and fly through the air. He usually did that at night when no one could see; the exception was when he needed to save someone. But he really loved the feeling of flying because it gave him a rush like nothing else could. He had always loved watching birds fly when he was very young, and it was satisfying to be able to reach those same heights.

As Akaashi and Kenma grew up, they stuck together and didn't try to make other friends. The two were intentionally distant and cold towards other kids. Despite that, they did end up getting along with a couple other boys in high school, one of which also had psychic abilities; they even remained in contact with those two friends after they all graduated. But being adverse to socializing with new people was a habit that stuck with them into adulthood. It was risky to get close to others.

When Akaashi and Kenma started doing hero work, they made a promise to do it anonymously. It wouldn’t be safe to expose their abilities without protecting their identity. People could be cruel; who knew what would happen if their powers were discovered? 

  
  



	4. A String Of Bad Luck

The next day, Bokuto and Kuroo were in their first class. They had it with a couple of their other friends as well. The four of them were sitting together in the front row talking about the plane crash. The incident had made national news and was being described as an unexplained phenomenon; no one could figure out how it had made it to land safely. 

At the moment, Kuroo was describing the experience. "I'm not even kidding. Half of the wing was fucking gone! Like, blown clear off,” he said while making explosion gestures with his hands. He was sitting between Bokuto and their friend Iwaizumi.

Iwaizumi and his boyfriend Oikawa were both listening with focused attention and slight horror. 

"That wasn't even the craziest part!" Bokuto practically yelled, earning him some irritated looks from other students who had also gotten to the class a little early. 

"What could possibly be crazier than that?" Iwaizumi said with a slight scowl. His voice sounded concerned, despite his facial expression; he had a naturally sour look.

Bokuto paused for dramatics as he grinned at his friends. ".... a man came out of nowhere and jumped onto the plane! He put his hands on the broken wing like he was pushing it. The plane evened out right after that. And then when we landed, it was as if someone had gently set the plane down. The man vanished right after!" 

Oikawa leaned across Iwaizumi's desk and spoke in a solemn voice. "There’s only _one thing_ it could have been…"

Iwaizumi pushed Oikawa back into his seat. "I swear, if you’re about to say aliens…."

Oikawa pouted and put his arms around Iwaizumi’s shoulder. " _Iwa-chaaan._ This was obviously the work of someone, or something that isn't from this world!"

"It looked like a normal man. But he had a kitsune mask on, so I didn't see his face," Bokuto said thoughtfully. He hadn’t stopped thinking about the masked man since the plane crash.

“Looks can be deceiving,” Oikawa said with a playful wink.

Kuroo stretched his legs out under his desk and put his hands behind his head. "There was another dude that showed up wearing a cat mask. Wish I could have seen his face. He appeared out of thin air and disappeared with the first guy before we knew what was happening."

Bokuto drummed his fingers on his desk. "I wonder where they went." 

The teacher walked in and called attention, so all four men turned their focus forward. The class wasn't much more than going over the syllabus and getting their first assignment; it didn’t require much concentration.

Bokuto’s mind kept wandering back to the masked man. He wished he could have talked to the man, or at least given thanks. That was all he could think about.

As soon as the teacher finished, Oikawa hurried to stand up. "I have another class across campus. I'll see you guys later!" He rushed out of the room, slinging his backpack over his shoulder as he went.

Hajime stood up slowly and stretched. "I've got another class too. What about you guys?”

"My next class is like… two hours from now," Kuroo said lazily as he stayed in his chair.

Bokuto stood up suddenly, almost knocking his own chair back. "Let's go to the coffee shop right off campus! I want hot chocolate!" His voice was loud once again, but he didn't get any irritated looks this time. 

Kuroo smiled fondly at Bokuto as he went to stand up. "You're like a kid about hot chocolate, aren't you? I could go for some coffee. See you later, Hajime," he said as he nodded at Iwaizumi. 

Iwaizumi waved as he left the classroom. 

Bokuto rushed forward towards the door while he looked back at Kuroo. “You know, everyone loves hot chocolate! Not just kids!”

"Door," said Kuroo calmly as he pointed past Bokuto. 

Bokuto turned and found himself barely an inch away from the closing door; he had barely avoided walking into it. He pushed it open and laughed. "Close one!"

“You’ve gotta be more aware of your surroundings,” Kuroo said as he chuckled. “You’ve been super accident prone lately.”

Bokuto shrugged. “I’ve been unlucky, not accident prone.”

“Same thing,” Kuroo teased. 

The two men made their way across campus, and soon were at the coffee shop. They placed their orders and then found a table to sit at. When a waitress brought the drinks over, she almost tripped and spilled her tray on Bokuto; she barely caught herself in time. 

"I’m so sorry about that!" The woman said, blushing from embarrassment. 

Kuroo gave an easy grin. "No problem! You didn't spill anything on us. Looks like the drinks are okay, too."

The waitress apologized again as she set the drinks down on the table. 

Bokuto gave a friendly smile. “Really, it’s okay! Don’t worry about it!” He met the woman’s eyes and gave her an innocent wink.

The woman walked away with a fresh blush, this time not from embarrassment. 

"That chick’s into you," Kuroo said once the waitress was out of earshot. 

Bokuto chuckled and went to sip his hot chocolate. "Afraid she isn't my type."

Kuroo wiggled his eyebrows. "You do only go for guys lately. The pretty ones, especially." 

"Looks are not the only thing I care about! I’m not like you. You check out anyone with a nice ass," Bokuto teased, making a squeezing motion in the air with his hands. 

Kuroo took a long drink from his coffee and then winked. "You caught me, I'm an ass guy. Nice ass, maybe acts a bit like an ass too. If they aren't a little _sassy_ then it's not meant to be."

Bokuto smiled in a self assured way. "I know you're actually a major softie, so don’t think you’re fooling me. You’re just too shy to act when you really like someone. That's why you've never had a boyfriend." He took another sip of his hot chocolate and wore a smug expression. 

Kuroo grinned slyly as he stirred cream and sugar into his coffee. "And here I thought it was just because I'm too awesome to be handled."

Bokuto patted Kuroo’s shoulder. “It’s okay to be shy, man. I’m not judging you. I’ll set you up with someone if you want.”

Kuroo shook his head. “Nah, I’m good. I’m not really looking right now.”

“Suit yourself,” Bokuto said with a shrug.

  
  


The two men spent more time than intended at the coffee shop; they ended up being in a hurry as they raced back across campus. Bokuto almost ran into three different people and nearly tripped over a huge rock. He really did seem to be having a clumsy streak lately. 

Kuroo laughed as he ran next to his friend, managing to avoid obstacles easily himself. "You're gonna fall on your ass one of these days!" 

"Stop thinking about my ass, pervert!" Bokuto called back. He almost collided with a trash can right after that. 

Kuroo let out a loud laugh at his friend's expense. 

The two men split up since they didn’t have the next class together. Once Bokuto had finally made it to his class, he had just barely avoided being late. There were only a couple open seats in the back row. He made his way over to one and checked out the whiteboard; there was a writing assignment on the very first day. He groaned as he dug some paper and a pencil out of his bag.

_‘More rotten luck,’_ he thought to himself as he settled in to start writing. 


	5. Getting To Know You, And Keeping You Safe While I'm At It

Akaashi had a hard time focusing in his first class. Not because it was a hard subject; the teacher was only going over the syllabus. The actual reason he was distracted was because of what he overheard from a group of men at the front of the room.

Two of the men had been on the plane that Akaashi had saved the day before.

And they had seen Akaashi.

And had seen Kenma and him teleport.

And they were telling others about it. Others who, it seemed, believed the story. 

Akaashi decided that he needed to gather more information on these men to see if they were the type to stir up a story on the internet. At the end of class, one from the group of men rushed out right away. That was fine though; he only needed to follow the two that were on the plane for now.

One of the men that had been on the plane, who had black hair with bleached white streaks up throughout it, had stood quickly from his chair and knocked it back. Akaashi automatically caught the chair with his mind before it finished falling and set it upright. He made it rock a couple times so it didn’t look too suspicious. 

The owlish haired man rushed towards the door; he wasn't watching where he was going and the door almost swung closed on his face. Akaashi paused it right before it hit him. He was tired from using his abilities excessively the day before, and didn’t want to have to use them a lot that day. So he found himself slightly irritated for using his powers back to back for such silly little things.

He followed the two men at a distance for a while; they wound up at a coffee shop. Akaashi slipped inside after the two men were seated, then sat at a table close enough to hear them talking. As a waitress was bringing the two men their drinks, she almost tripped, which would have drenched the owlish haired man with hot beverages.

Akaashi quickly held the tray up with his mind, just enough for the waitress to catch herself. And he also kept the cups steady while he was at it. He couldn't stand by and let perfectly good drinks be wasted. 

After that near accident, the two men had a long conversation. Akaashi felt a little ashamed for overhearing it because he didn't like eavesdropping. And the two men didn't even mention the plane crash during the entire time they were talking. 

Suddenly, the two men were rushing out of the coffee shop. Akaashi checked his phone and realized that he was almost late for class, so he ended up running out of the building as well. He wasn't that far behind the owlish haired man; they were both going the same direction.

Akaashi ended up having to subtly tug the man's clothes with his abilities several different times, to help the man avoid running into people. Then he had to move a rock away from the man’s feet. Finally, he had to tug the man's clothes rather hard because the man had been about to collide with a trash can. 

It was hard to believe someone could be so clumsy. The man should be covered in bruises and broken bones at this rate, if not worse. He was the most accident prone person that Akaashi had ever encountered.

Akaashi found himself getting slightly stressed out as he went along. Partially because the man seemed like he was going to hurt himself constantly. But it was also because he couldn't stop himself from stepping in and saving the man at every turn.

He ended up following the man all the way to his next class; they had it together. They both made it inside right before the teacher was ready to start. There were only two open seats left, and they were in the back corner of the room. Akaashi found himself sitting right beside the owlish man. 

Despite trying his best to focus on what the teacher was saying, Akaashi found that half his attention remained on the man sitting beside him. Bokuto, according to the name that the man wrote on top of his paper; the teacher had assigned a quick writing exercise to begin the class. 

Bokuto was spinning his pencil in one hand in between each sentence he wrote. His tongue was stuck out slightly and he seemed to be thinking hard about what he should write next. At one point, the pencil got away from him and almost flew into his eye. It would have too, if not for Akaashi's unseen interference. 

Akaashi had managed to finish his assignment despite having to keep an eye on Bokuto. There was an 'almost stapled his finger' incident and an 'almost rocked too far back in his chair and hit his head on the counter behind him' incident before the class was over. Akaashi was starting to feel genuinely concerned for Bokuto’s safety. 

When the teacher dismissed them, Akaashi stood up slowly. He was debating if he should follow Bokuto home just to make sure he got there without hurting himself. That’s how concerned he was feeling at that point. But before he could decide, Bokuto literally walked into him. 

"Oh, sorry! I didn't see… '' Bokuto's words cut short as he looked at Akaashi and studied his face. 

Akaashi felt a small rise of panic. Did the man recognize him somehow? Was he going to confront him? Why was he turning red? Wait, why _was_ he turning red? Was he choking?

Oh. He was blushing. 

"You're… I didn't… were you sitting next to me this whole time?" Bokuto sputtered out.

Akaashi blinked at Bokuto. Did the man really only just figure that out? "Yes, Bokuto-san. I was sitting right next to you all throughout this class.”

Bokuto turned even more red. "How did you know my name? Have we met before?"

It was Akaashi's turn to blush. "We have not. I'm sorry, I saw your name on your paper. I should probably introduce myself properly. I'm Akaashi Keiji." 

"I'm Bokuto Koutarou! Oh wait… you already knew that…." Despite seeming impossible, Bokuto grew even redder. He dropped his eyes to his feet, shuffling one of his shoes nervously. 

Akaashi didn't quite understand the reaction he was seeing.

Kenma never acted like this, and he was the person that Akaashi measured most people's behavior against. He had never paid much attention to the other kids in class growing up, aside from the pair of friends that he and Kenma had made in high school. But come to think of it, the way Bokuto was acting reminded him a bit of his friend Daichi. He was sure that he had seen Daichi act like this with Suga, who the man was now dating.

Akaashi decided that this was probably a good opportunity to get closer to Bokuto, and figure out what the man’s plans were for the plane crash information. He cleared his throat as he tried to decide how to go about initiating more time together. "Do you have a class right after this?" 

Bokuto tilted his head as if confused. "Wh… do I have a class… after… oh! No, I'm actually done for the day! I have a pretty light semester.”

"Perhaps we could get lunch together then," Akaashi offered. He was trying to be both friendly and casual.

Bokuto's mouth hung slightly open as he blinked at Akaashi. He seemed frozen. 

Akaashi bit at his inner cheek as he took in Bokuto’s reaction. He wondered if that was the wrong thing to say. Was lunch too formal for a new acquaintance? Maybe he should have offered to get hot chocolate together instead.

As Akaashi's mind went a mile a minute, Bokuto finally managed to comprehend the invitation. "Yeah! Lunch would be great, but only if you'll let me pay!" He seemed to have found his confidence as he stood up taller and gave Akaashi a warm smile. 

Akaashi felt his heart beat a little faster at the sight of that smile. He figured that he was just nervous about getting close to someone for information. "You don't have to pay for me. I can pay for myself."

Bokuto shook his head and grinned wider. "I insist on paying! Do you know where you want to go, or should I choose? I know a really good spot that’s close to campus." 

Before he could answer, Akaashi felt Bokuto grab his wrist and pull him along out of the classroom. The man seemed to be extremely excited about getting lunch together. So much so that it was all Akaashi could do to keep Bokuto from running into people or tripping over things. Since he was still so worn out from yesterday, the strain of frequently moving small things was grinding on his nerves.

As they went along, Bokuto provided a constant stream of happy chatter. 

Any time Bokuto tried to ask Akaashi about himself, he turned the conversation back to being about Bokuto as soon as he could. He didn't want to reveal that much about who he was. However, Bokuto had no problem sharing information; Akaashi learned a lot about him on the walk to the restaurant and while they ate their meal. 

Bokuto lived with Kuroo. They were best friends since childhood, just like Akaashi and Kenma. He used to play volleyball with Kuroo, Iwaizumi, and Oikawa, who had all been with Bokuto in the morning class. He still liked to play volleyball sometimes, just for fun. He was studying to be a physical therapist, but he hoped to be able to coach volleyball at his old high school someday. He cared about his friends and his family. And he had lost his grandmother recently, which was hard on him because they had been close.

Overall, Akaashi decided that Bokuto seemed like a really nice guy; probably was not the type to get an anonymous psychic hunted down. Though Bokuto did remain consistently clumsy. 

After Bokuto had paid for dinner, he almost left his wallet on the table. 

Next, Bokuto almost tripped and fell on top of Akaashi as they left the restaurant. 

After that, he almost walked into a wooden pole because he was staring at Akaashi instead of where he was walking.

As they went down the sidewalk, Akaashi offered to walk Bokuto home; partially because he was worried that Bokuto might walk into the street without looking, and partially because he forgot to ask about the plane crash. That had been the entire purpose of this outing, after all.

Bokuto seemed especially delighted that Akaashi wanted to escort him home. They ended up walking close together; their hands almost brushed with each step. Every now and again, he would look over at Akaashi with a bright smile.

Akaashi cleared thoughts about Bokuto's smile from his mind. "So, I heard you talking to your friends in class this morning. About a plane crash."

Bokuto became animated as he described the whole flight in detail. How it had been the most terrifying thing ever. That a mysterious man had come from nowhere and saved everyone. And how he really hoped that the masked man was okay. 

Akaashi couldn't help the smile that tugged at his lips as Bokuto praised him unknowingly while showing such genuine concern for him. By the time he seemed finished with the story, they had already reached the apartment. 

"Thanks again for asking me out to lunch, 'Kaashi," Bokuto said as they reached the door. 

Akaashi felt his ears turn red at the sudden nickname. "I should thank you again for paying, Bokuto-san. You really didn't have to do that."

Bokuto gave a beaming smile. "It was no problem, I had a good time! I'd like to do it again soon, and we can talk more about you. I'd like to get to know you better!"

Akaashi's eyes widened slightly as he took in Bokuto's eager and sincere expression. He had never had someone be so enthusiastic about wanting to spend time with him. He spent most of his time with Kenma, who didn't exactly show his feelings openly. Even Suga and Daichi were more subtle when they first started hanging out with Akaashi, back in their first year of high school.

Akaashi didn't really know how he felt about spending time with Bokuto again.

Meanwhile, Bokuto was looking at Akaashi; his expression was soft and thoughtful. “I… can I… hug you?"

"Uhm. Okay?" Akaashi replied quietly. He hadn’t been expecting a hug.

He was immediately pulled into Bokuto’s arms. He was held tightly, and he ended up closing his eyes and returning the embrace. It had been a long time since he’d gotten such a sincere hug; it made him happier than he thought it would.

Suddenly, Akaashi heard someone clear their throat. With Bokuto still holding him, he turned his head and saw the messy haired man, who he had learned was named Kuroo. He immediately felt embarrassed over being caught hugging Bokuto. 

Kuroo was giving a satisfied smirk while he raised an eyebrow and nodded at Akaashi. “Who do we have here?”

Akaashi quickly moved away from Bokuto and then bowed to both men. "I have to be going. Goodbye,” he said in a rushed voice. He didn't wait for a response as he hurried away. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I kind of have the song West Coast by Imagine Dragons as my "when Akaashi thinks about Bokuto in this fic" themesong.


	6. Kenma Knows Many Things

Akaashi made it home quickly. He knew Kenma would have been expecting him sooner, and he hoped he hadn’t worried his friend by not communicating his plans. 

"You gonna get together with the guy you were hugging?" Kenma was sitting on the couch playing his Nintendo switch, not even looking up when he spoke. He sounded almost bored by the prospect of Akaashi being held by an attractive stranger.

Akaashi had just barely made it inside. He paused before he closed the front door, when he heard Kenma's question. After a moment, he replied and matched Kenma's uninterested tone. "So you peeked into my future, did you?" He finished closing the door and went to sit on the couch next to Kenma. 

Kenma shrugged. "You weren't home yet, even though your class had been over for an hour."

Akaashi hummed. "You're a worrywart, sometimes."

Kenma rolled his eyes. "So, you like this guy a lot, huh? Didn't think you were the type to fall for someone on a first date."

"First date? I think you misread the situation. I asked him to lunch because he was on the plane yesterday, and saw us. I needed to get information from him," Akaashi said, ignoring the slight blush that was trying to spread across his face. 

If the information that they had been spotted yesterday was a surprise to Kenma, he certainly didn't show it. His voice was calm as he replied. "Isn't asking someone out to lunch in order to get to know them the definition of a date? Don't dates often end in an affectionate way, with a hug or kiss? Or did you slip there at the end and that kind man just happened to catch you?"

Akaashi's mind was turning as his blush deepened. Did he accidentally ask Bokuto out on a date? Was that why Bokuto had been so happy, and insisted on paying? Is that why they hugged at the end of it? 

‘ _Oh, no. No way. No,’_ Akaashi thought to himself. It really did seem like a date. He cleared his throat and spoke as calmly as he could. "What an… an amusing misunderstanding."

"Yeah, I'm definitely amused," said Kenma, still focused on his game. Only someone who knew him very well could tell that he truly was quite happy for his friend, and not just being sarcastic. 

Akaashi sighed and ignored Kenma's teasing. "It’s a good thing I was there with him today, though. He’s incredibly accident prone. I saved him from quite a few situations in the short time we were together."

"So you really do care about him already. That's cute," Kenma said in a light tone. He had the slightest hint of a smile on his lips.

Akaashi frowned at his friend. "I couldn't sit by and let him embarrass himself or get seriously hurt."

Kenma hummed thoughtfully. "If he really is _that_ accident prone, and right after nearly dying in a plane crash, you might want to have Suga check him. It could be a malicious spirit trying to hurt him."

Akaashi considered Kenma's words; Suga happened to be the only other psychic that he and Kenma knew. Suga and his boyfriend Daichi were the only people they would even list as friends. They had met in high school after Suga had noticed their auras and initiated conversation with them.

Eventually Akaashi and Kenma grew to trust Suga; they started to hang out with him and Daichi sometimes. Suga could read auras and see spirits, as well as perform exorcisms as needed. Now they occasionally consulted with each other for work.

Suga was a detective who often took on cold cases, to solve murders for ghosts that were angry that they had been killed. The spirits wouldn't rest until they had justice. Sometimes Suga needed Kenma to read the future of suspects to make sure they wouldn't kill again before the investigation was over. 

Daichi worked as a detective as well. He and Suga were partners at work and in life. Daichi was a solid friend, considerate and trustworthy. And he didn't mind the sarcasm from Kenma and Akaashi. He got enough of that from Suga to be able to read between the lines. The four friends were a content set when they got together. 

"It's been a while since we’ve seen them. It wouldn't be a bad idea to reach out to them, regardless," Akaashi said nonchalantly. But he felt slightly uneasy when he considered that a vengeful ghost might hurt Bokuto. The thought of that clumsy yet cute man getting hurt made him feel strange; he wanted to keep Bokuto safe to avoid that strange feeling. So he pulled out his phone to text Suga. 

**_Suga_ **

Sent at 4:30pm:

_Hey. We should hang out soon. Hope you're both doing well. I was wondering, do you need to meet someone in person to check for a malicious spirit haunting them?_

Kenma gave Akaashi a knowing look before returning his eyes back to his game. "It's not going to hurt you to admit you care about him."

"You make it sound like I want to confess to him," Akaashi said in a mellow voice. 

Kenma replied just as calmly. "You _will_ want to pretty soon."

"Is that what you've seen in my future?" Akaashi asked the question irritably because he thought Kenma shouldn't be so nosy. 

Kenma slightly shook his head and gave a smug grin. "No, I didn't look. I just know you well enough to be able to tell when you have a crush."

Akaashi ignored his friend, checking Suga's reply on his phone instead. 

**Suga**

Received 4:32pm:

_We are doing really great! I was just thinking about you, actually. Let's do dinner all together this weekend? Also, it is best if I meet whoever you're thinking might be haunted. But if you take a picture of them, I should be able to get enough of a read on the aura to tell you if something has mixed into it. If an exorcism is required then I'll need to do that in person._

  
  


**Suga**

Sent 4:33pm: 

_Let's plan for dinner at my place Friday night? Thanks. I'll try to text you a picture soon._

Kenma suddenly cleared his throat. "By the way, a bus is going to hit your 'not boyfriend' in about twenty minutes."

Akaashi stared at Kenma, his features frozen and almost angry. "You didn't think to lead with that information?"

Kenma shrugged. "Would you be in a hurry to tell me something that would probably make me jump in front of a bus? You've got enough time to get there. It’ll happen right down the street from his apartment."

Akaashi didn't reply. He dashed to his bedroom, put his black clothes on quickly, and grabbed his mask before running to the front door. 

"Be careful," Kenma called after his friend. 

  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Electric Love by Borns is my "Bokuto thinking about Akaashi song"


	7. I'll Save You Every Time

Right after Akaashi had left Bokuto at his front door, he and Kuroo went inside.

Kuroo immediately grabbed Bokuto into a headlock once the front door was closed. "You sly dog! Wasn't that guy in our first class this morning!? You move quickly, don’t you?" He was beaming with a combination of amusement and curiosity. 

Bokuto chuckled as he pushed his friend off of himself. "Thanks a lot for interrupting and making him uncomfortable, you jerk! I didn't get his phone number before he left."

Kuroo shrugged and grinned lazily. "You'll see him tomorrow. The class we have with him is both Thursday and Friday mornings."

Bokuto smiled in relief. "Oh yeah! Bro, you should have seen him. He’s so beautiful. And he seems really smart.”

"I did see him, just now. While you two were having a moment at our front door," Kuroo teased with a wink. 

Bokuto jumped onto the couch and laid down, then hugged a pillow to his chest. "I can't wait to see him again! I wish I could text him right now…."

Kuroo laughed and jumped to sit on top of the pillow that Bokuto held. "It’s a good thing you didn't get his number already, you'd scare him off by sending him thirty texts in a row."

Bokuto flung Kuroo off the pillow, sending the man sprawling onto the floor. "Would not! I'd only send him one text. Or a couple. Or I’d ask for a picture because I really want to see his face again."

Kuroo grinned from where he was all spread out on the ground. "Yeah that's not super weird at all after a first date."

"He’s the one who asked for the date, I'll have you know! We had my second class together and he sat next to me. Then he asked me out right after class ended," Bokuto said defensively. 

Kuroo sat up and raised an eyebrow. "I wouldn't have guessed that he initiated it. Damn man, that's great! Are you going to go on another date?”

Bokuto pulled more pillows on top of himself, wiggling into a pillow nest. His voice came out slightly muffled from under the pile. "I hope so. I wanna ask him out.”

“You’re so cute when you have a crush,” Kuroo teased.

Bokuto chuckled from inside his pillow pile. “I’m always cute, thank you very much. I can't wait to tell Tooru and Hajime about Akaashi. Are we meeting at their place or are they coming here?"

Kuroo looked at his phone. "They should be here any minute. Then we’ll all walk to the movie theater together. Pretty sure it's some alien movie again. Hajime always caves in to Tooru’s whims and then we end up watching whatever that space nerd wants to see."

"I don't mind the alien movies as long as they’re not too scary," said Bokuto as he sat up in his pillow pile. 

The front door opened just then. Oikawa strolled in confidently, followed closely by Hajime. 

"I've been doing research in my spare time today," Oikawa announced, holding out his arms as if he was expecting applause. He paused that way for a few moments. 

Kuroo chuckled and gave the man a smirk. "Well? Tell us what you've been researching, Tooru."

Hajime sighed loudly and went to sit on the couch next to Bokuto. He had likely heard about the research in great detail already.

Oikawa ignored Hajime's dramatics and began telling his friends what he’d learned. "So, I scoured the internet for anything having to do with a man in a kitsune mask or a cat mask, and guess what i found out!?"

"Aliens are behind it?" Kuroo deadpanned.

Oikawa flipped his hair. "Well, that can't be ruled out. But that's not it. There have been at least a dozen sightings of a masked hero around Japan. No pictures yet, unfortunately."

"Think the aliens are so scary that they have to hide their face under a mask?" Kuroo asked solemnly, putting his hands over his face and peeking out from between his fingers.

"More like whoever’s behind it doesn't want anyone in their business, which is both understandable and respectable," Hajime said gruffly. 

Oikawa crossed his arms. "Why would someone avoid the fame and attention that comes with saving people in such amazing ways?! No normal person, I'd say. It makes the possibility of it being extraterrestrials an even stronger argument."

Bokuto spoke up, and his voice was slightly sad. "You know, my grandma used to say she could see ghosts. Because of that, people called her crazy her whole life. So I can understand why someone wouldn't want to be open about having some type of superpower." He had loved his grandma very much and it still hurt to remember how people would whisper mean things about her. 

Hajime looked at the clock and frowned. He stood up and threw a pillow at Oikawa, who was about to speak again. "If we stay here any longer, we’re going to miss the special anniversary showing of E.T. that Tooru hasn’t shut up about for months."

Oikawa refocused himself and clapped his hands excitedly, rushing towards the door. "Let's go, boys! Get to it! Movie starts in thirty minutes and it's going to take twenty to walk there!"

Everyone gathered around the door, slipping their shoes on before following Oikawa outside. They were a loud group as they walked down the sidewalk. Once Kuroo had told Iwaizumi and Oikawa about what he walked up on when he got home earlier, everyone focused their energy on interrogating and playfully teasing Bokuto. 

No one saw the bottle on the ground at the edge of the sidewalk. By the time they realized Bokuto had tripped, he was already laying across the street, slowly sitting up and rubbing the back of his head where he had hit the pavement.

A bus was coming up fast and started laying on the horn. 

Bokuto was frozen in shock; his expression was full of fear as he looked at the oncoming vehicle.

Everyone yelled Bokuto's name and started to run towards him. But before they left the sidewalk, a man wearing all black shot past them and jumped on top of Bokuto. It was, of course, Akaashi; though none of them knew that.

Akaashi’s legs straddled Bokuto's waist as he sat up and reached his hands towards the oncoming bus. 

Everyone's eyes were wide as they witnessed what happened next, but Bokuto was the most surprised out of everyone as he stared up at the man in the white kitsune mask. The man who was saving him once again.

Akaashi lifted the bus up right as it reached his hands. He moved it above his body, sweeping it over himself and Bokuto with one hand and then the other. Once it was past them, he lowered the bus to the ground with one hand before standing and pulling Bokuto up after him. He quickly led the surprised man back onto the sidewalk and out of traffic.

Oikawa was the first to gain his composure. He pulled out his phone and tried to take some pictures, but he only managed to take a couple. 

Akaashi reached his hand towards the phone and it shot out of Oikawa's hand, right into his waiting one. 

Oikawa's jaw dropped. 

Iwaizumi looked between Oikawa and the masked man. "How did you do that!?" 

Bokuto was reaching a hand towards Akaashi. He wanted to thank the man for the plane rescue, and for today's bus rescue. But before Bokuto could reach Akaashi, another man appeared beside him. Kenma, who was dressed in black and wearing his cat mask, set his hand on Akaashi’s shoulder; the two of them disappeared in a blink. 

"The cat mask guy showed up too! Holy hell, did you guys see that?!" Kuroo said, running his hands through his naturally disheveled hair. It happened so fast that it would have been hard to see unless someone was already looking at where Kenma had appeared.

Oikawa frowned. "He took my phone… now I can't even tweet about this."

Iwaizumi ruffled his boyfriend's hair. "He took it because you tried to take a picture of him with it. Serves you right"

Bokuto remained quiet. He couldn't believe that the kitsune mask man had saved him, yet again. The man was like a real life superhero or something. He couldn't wait to see Akaashi in class tomorrow and tell the story of how a bus almost hit him. 


	8. Meet The Friends

Akaashi had woken up late and was in a rush to get to class. He had not been able to sleep well; not after Bokuto had almost been hit by a bus. It was unsettling knowing that the man had almost been seriously injured or killed. 

The thought of that made Akaashi really nervous; he ended up asking Kenma to check Bokuto's immediate future the whole evening after he had saved the man, until Kenma finally saw that Bokuto was in bed and safely sleeping. 

Kenma had teased Akaashi about it, but still did the checks every time his friend asked. ‘Anything for my best friend’s crush,’ he had said each time he looked at Bokuto’s future for Akaashi.

By the time Akaashi had finally fallen asleep, it was close to one in the morning. His last thought before drifting off was that he absolutely had to get a picture of Bokuto and send it to Suga. If there was a spirit causing misfortune, Akaashi was going to have it destroyed. He couldn't rest easy until he knew there was nothing out there trying to hurt his… his… whatever Bokuto was to him. 

Akaashi was practically running when he came into class; it was right as the professor was about to begin the lecture. 

"Psst. 'Kaashi! Come sit with us," Bokuto said in an attempted whisper as he patted an open seat next to him. It wasn't that quiet though, and the whole room ended up staring at Akaashi. 

With the eyes of the whole class on him, Akaashi kind of wanted to melt into the floor out of embarrassment. But he calmly made his way to the seat next to Bokuto. Kuroo was giving him an amused look, as though he had forgotten to get dressed and found it funny.

Akaashi subtly glanced down at himself as he sat down, just to be sure that he  _ actually had _ put pants on that morning. He saw that he was in fact wearing pants, thankfully. 

Next to Bokuto was Kuroo. And the two men sitting past Kuroo were the same ones that were also with Bokuto last night. Akaashi felt a little suspicious of Oikawa since the man had tried to take his picture after the incident. Kenma had cleared the phone's memory, then teleported himself back to the sidewalk for a very brief moment. He slipped the phone into Oikawa's pocket and then transported himself back home before anyone had time to notice. 

Once Akaashi was settled into his seat, Bokuto wrote on a piece of paper and slipped it over to him. 

_ I have something so cool to tell you! Also, can you stay after class to meet my friends? _

Akaashi quickly read the note. He felt a little nervous about meeting the other men, but he was also very curious about them; he needed to know that Oikawa wasn’t going to stir up trouble for him. So he wrote on the note before sliding it back to Bokuto.

_ This is my only class today, so I'm free. I can stay to meet your friends if you want.  _

Bokuto smiled before he wrote something and passed the note back. 

_ Cool! I had a really good time on our date yesterday. I’d love to go out with you again soon!  _

A blush spread across Akaashi’s face. Bokuto’s note had confirmed that the lunch had been interpreted as a date. Although he found that he wasn’t that upset about the misunderstanding. In fact, he felt a stirring of excitement when he thought about going on another date with Bokuto. He was unsure of what to say, so he wrote back a quick response.

_ That sounds nice. _

Bokuto smiled and passed the note back after just a moment.

_ Can I have your phone number? I wanted to ask yesterday but I forgot.  _

Akaashi wrote his number on the note, then passed it back to Bokuto. 

Just then, the professor cleared his throat loudly as he looked between Bokuto and Akaashi. "Is my lecture too boring to hold your attention?"

Akaashi and Bokuto both apologized and turned their focus to taking notes. They were sitting close enough together that Akaashi could feel Bokuto's thigh up against his own. It made him kind of warm, fuzzy feeling, which was embarrassing; he had no reason to be so excited about his leg touching Bokuto’s leg. And yet, here he was doing his best to suppress a smile.

He glanced at Bokuto while trying to be subtle about it. But the man seemed to feel his gaze though. They ended up smiling at each other, both sporting a fresh blush.

When the professor dismissed the class, Bokuto stood up excitedly, almost knocking his chair over. Akaashi used his powers to keep it from falling all the way back, making it rock a couple times instead. 

"So everyone, this is Akaashi Keiji!" Bokuto said proudly, sitting on the desk in front of Akaashi. 

Kuroo smirked mischievously. "Nice to see you again, Akaashi. I'm Kuroo Tetsurou."

Iwaizumi nodded at Akaashi and gave a friendly smile. "I'm Iwaizumi Hajime."

Oikawa got up and moved to Bokuto's empty seat. He looked closely at Akaashi; his brown eyes were calculating and almost looked suspicious. 

It made Akaashi slightly uncomfortable to be under Oikawa's sharp gaze. It felt like the man could see through him; like maybe Oikawa had somehow been able to see through his mask last night and was now going to reveal his secret.

Finally, Oikawa spoke. "So you're the mysterious beauty that's captured the attention of our Koutarou? I'm Oikawa Tooru and I’d like to ask you some background questions. Nothing serious, of course. I just want to confirm that you’re the right kind of guy for my friend.”

Kuroo stood up and leaned his head next to Oikawa's, grinning playfully as he joined in staring at Akaashi. "Yes, I’ve got questions too. What are your intentions with our gentle beast, beauty?"

Iwaizumi smacked both Kuroo and Oikawa in the back of the head. "Stop being obnoxious. This poor guy doesn't know you well enough to deal with your weird shit." 

The two mean groaned and turned to glare at Iwaizumi with matching pouts. 

Bokuto turned his body so that he was facing Akaashi with a foot resting on either side of the man’s chair. "Don't mind them, they’re just excited. You'll like them once you get to know them!" 

Akaashi blushed at the close proximity of Bokuto's body to his own. 

"You'll learn to tolerate them, at least," Iwaizumi said jokingly.

Oikawa frowned at Iwaizumi. "Iwa-chan! Don't be mean in front of our new friend. You'll give him a bad impression."

"You can do that all on your own, sweetheart," Iwaizumi said dryly.

Just then, Bokuto went to stand up. But he nearly toppled off the desk while doing so.

Akaashi manipulated Bokuto’s clothes to keep the man from completely falling. It reminded him that he needed to get a picture sent to Suga, and he needed to do it as soon as possible. He thought quickly and came up with a plan, pulling his phone out. "Bokuto-san, I don't have your phone number yet. Can I take a picture of you for your contact photo?"

Bokuto smiled brightly as he steadied himself after his almost fall. "Sure! Can I have one of you too?"

Oikawa grabbed Akaashi's phone without asking. "I'll take a picture of you two together, and then you can have the same contact photo for each other."

"Cute idea!" Kuroo crooned.

Oikawa elbowed Kuroo out of his way and then positioned the phone for taking the photo. Akaashi didn't have time to think about it before Bokuto had pulled him up out of his seat. The man then moved to stand behind him. 

Bokuto wrapped his arms around Akaashi's waist and leaned his head down on the man’s shoulder, smiling widely.

Akaashi felt himself blush at the contact with Bokuto's body. It reminded him of the hug they had shared after their date. He ended up hesitantly resting his hands on top of Bokuto's while Oikawa took a few pictures.

"Very cute, you guys,” Kuroo said as he smiled sincerely at the pair. 

"Right? They're a good looking couple," Oikawa said as he handed the phone back to Akaashi. 

"Couple?" Akaashi asked in surprise. He didn't really know where they stood after the accidental date, it’s not like they’d talked about it. He felt Bokuto's body stiffen behind him.

"Oh, uh. They didn’t mean...uh…" Bokuto seemed flustered. “I guess I haven't officially asked you if we can date each other exclusively.”

Kuroo clicked his tongue playfully and winked. "Hurry up and make it official, then." 

Oikawa shook his head and gave a reproachful frown. "Look at him, Koutarou. He’s worried. He needs you to make your intentions clear and give reassurance that you like him."

Iwaizumi stood up, then pulled Oikawa and Kuroo out of the chair they were practically sharing at that point. He nodded at Bokuto as he spoke. "We’re leaving now, so you two can talk without a couple of idiots narrating your life," he said firmly as he pushed the two men along.

"Iwa-chan, stop pushing!" Oikawa hurried to grab his backpack before it was out of his reach, since Iwaizumi was literally forcing him away from the desks.

Kuroo managed to grab his backpack as well before he and Oikawa were pushed along and basically shoved out of the room. 

Bokuto had let go of Akaashi and was now standing kind of awkwardly, scratching the back of his neck with one hand. "Sorry they assumed that… that you're my boyfriend. I was going to ask you, when the time felt… right…."

Akaashi stared at Bokuto, his mind turning. The idea of being the man’s boyfriend didn't upset him or seem unappealing. Actually, he felt kind of happy at the idea of it. He silently cursed Kenma for being correct about him having a crush on Bokuto. "So… you want me to be your boyfriend?"

Bokuto looked at Akaashi hopefully. "Well, yeah. I like you."

Akaashi felt his body flush right up to his ears. No one had ever confessed to him before. He understood what it was like now, the 'butterflies in your stomach' feeling. After a long silence, he realized that Bokuto was waiting for him to respond; the man had begun to look worried and disappointed after the extended pause.

"I like you, too,” Akaashi said quietly as he played with his hands. 

Bokuto brightened up immediately, and it was like looking at a sunrise. "So you'll be my boyfriend, then?"

"Yes, Bokuto-san," said Akaashi, giving a small grin. 

Bokuto fist pumped the air and jumped backwards a few steps, almost tripping himself over a chair. Akaashi quickly used his mind to scoot the chair out of Bokuto's path. 

"Oh hey, send me the picture of us!" Bokuto said happily. He then told Akaashi his phone number. 

Akaashi saved Bokuto's number and then sent the photo to the man. He also used that moment to send it to Suga. He really needed to know if his friend… boyfriend, needed help getting rid of a spiteful ghost. He was extremely worn out from moving the bus yesterday, and the plane the day before. So it was tiresome to be constantly looking out for little mishaps. Not that Akaashi was complaining about it; he was glad to keep Bokuto safe.

Bokuto set the photo as his contact image for Akaashi, and also as his background photo. Then he held his phone up and proudly showed it to his boyfriend.

“We both look very happy in the photo,” Akaashi said. Then he felt his phone buzz, so he checked the message immediately; if it was Suga, then the man had already seen the image of Bokuto and could tell him if he should be worried. 

**Suga**

Received 10:30am

_ It’s really important for me to see that man in person as soon as possible. Have him join us for dinner tonight. Keep him close, okay? _

  
  
  
  
  



	9. Time Well Spent

Thanks to the text from Suga, Akaashi decided that he would not be letting Bokuto out of his sight. 

At least, not until Bokuto could meet Suga at dinner that night, so that the spiritual medium could perform an exorcism right then and there if necessary. Then the damn malicious spirit would stop trying to hurt Bokuto.

"Bokuto-san, do you want to spend the day with me? And have dinner with my roommate and some of our friends this evening?" Akaashi asked immediately after he finished reading the message from Suga. 

Bokuto looked elated. "Yeah I'd love to do that! Oh, but Kuroo and I are supposed to have dinner together and play video games. It's our Friday night tradition."

"Kuroo could come to dinner too. My roommate loves video games, I'm sure he would be happy to have people to play against," Akaashi offered. He really, really didn't want to let Bokuto be away from him today. His nerves wouldn't be able to take it. 

Bokuto smiled and started typing on his phone. "I'll ask Kuroo and see what he thinks. He probably won't mind. He wants to get to know you better, too."

Akaashi nodded and decided that he should let Kenma know as well. He typed out a text and sent it. 

**Kenma:**

Sent at 10:35am

_ Hey, two extra people may be joining us for dinner tonight. _

**Kenma:**

Received at 10:35am

_ I know. I get a vision whenever you’re about to do something that will annoy me.  _

**Kenma:**

Sent at 10:36am

_ Nice to know that you have mental notifications set for me. Really shows how much you care. _

Akaashi was smiling at the thought of Kenma's face, which was probably scrunched up in disgust at the thought of extra visitors. But this situation made it necessary. 

Bokuto's words brought Akaashi’s attention back to the moment. "Kuroo said he thinks that’ll be fun. Cool, I'm excited! What do you want to do until then?" 

Akaashi hummed. "I'm not sure. Do you have any ideas?"

Bokuto suddenly pulled Akaashi into his arms for a hug as he thought for a minute. "What do you usually do for fun?"

Akaashi leaned himself against Bokuto's chest. It was warm and comfortable. "I like to skate. Actually, I need to go buy a new skateboard. Do you want to do that with me?"

Bokuto nodded enthusiastically and gave Akaashi a squeeze. "Can I watch you skateboard after? I always thought that was a really cool sport!"

Akaashi blushed slightly. "If you want. It might not be that fun, just to watch."

"Maybe I'll buy a board too then, and you can teach me!" Bokuto grabbed his backpack and led Akaashi out of class by the hand. 

Bokuto was so sincere and excited that Akaashi agreed to teach the man to skate. They went to a nearby skateshop and picked boards out. Akaashi chose an all black board with gold colored wheels. Bokuto picked a board with a giant white and grey owl painted on the bottom.

Bokuto was really excited about finding the owl skateboard; apparently he loved owls. He took several pictures of it and sent them all to Kuroo. Then he took some selfies, including Akaashi, and sent those to Kuroo as well.

Akaashi thought Bokuto was really cute when gushing over things he liked. 

They went to a nearby park that had a half-pipe and some railing. After many attempts, Bokuto still couldn't keep his balance on the board. He almost hurt himself multiple times and it made Akaashi mentally scold himself for agreeing to this before Suga could take care of Bokuto's ghost problem. 

Finally, Bokuto sat down on his skateboard and said he just wanted to watch Akaashi for a while. 

Akaashi agreed to show off some tricks. He started with a kickflip, ollie, and heelflip. Next he did some grinds across some of the railing. Then he did a few slides down the hand bars of some stairs. He didn't need to use his abilities for skate tricks. He had excellent balance and had practiced hard to get as good as he was. 

Bokuto watched closely the whole time; his face was both excited and impressed. 

When it was well past noon, they were both getting hungry. So they decided to head over to a nearby restaurant. They sat together on one side of a booth, leaving their backpacks and skateboards on the other side. Bokuto was holding Akaashi's hand under the table, gently rubbing his thumb over the man’s hand as they talked. 

Bokuto suddenly spoke up excitedly. "Akaashi, guess what?!" 

"What is it, Bokuto-san?" 

"Last night, a bus almost hit me!" Bokuto sounded way too happy about it.

Akaashi froze as the night before replayed in his mind. It had been a very stressful experience for him.

Bokuto went on. "Oh but that's not the important part. The bus wasn't able to hit me! Because the same guy who saved the plane a couple days ago came out of nowhere and jumped on me! He, like, lifted the bus over both of us! It was so cool! I wish I could have talked to him, but he left right after."

Akaashi had slowly started blinking again but his face held traces of his worry. 

Bokuto mistook it for jealousy and quickly backtracked. "Not that I was okay with him being on top of me or anything. I would have preferred it to be you on top of me! Ah, not that you have to feel pressured to be with me, like, in that way. I mean… if you wanted to, I would want to… uh, but you're way cooler than that guy, 'Kaashi. I think you're the best!"

After calming himself and putting his worry out of his mind, Akaashi squeezed Bokuto's hand. "I'm really glad you’re okay, and I think you're cool too. I'd be grateful to anyone who saves you, of course."

Bokuto seemed relieved. He let out a happy hum as he changed the subject. "Hey, we still have a few hours until we go to your place for dinner. Would you like to play volleyball with me? My gym has a volleyball court. I could teach you how to toss for me and show you how good I can spike!"

Akaashi nodded. "That sounds fun, Bokuto-san. I’d like that."

\----

They ended up staying at the gym for a few hours and had worked up a good sweat. They both needed to grab a quick shower because of that, but they didn’t have extra clothes with them. So the couple stopped at Bokuto's apartment to freshen up; it was closer than Akaashi’s place.

Akaashi had really enjoyed tossing for Bokuto. The man was almost graceful when on the court, and he was obviously talented. It was amazing to watch his boyfriend's strong body fly through the air and hit the ball with such precision; it was a magnificent sight to behold, even though Akaashi knew almost nothing about volleyball. 

Once they made it to the apartment, Bokuto let Akaashi shower first. He also lent out some clean clothes for Akaashi to wear. 

After rinsing off, Akaashi went to Bokuto’s room. He had some of the man’s pants on and was shirtless as he went to sit on the bed to towel off his hair. 

Bokuto was blushing as he looked at Akaashi wearing his clothes. “I’m… I’ll go shower now. Be right back,” he said as he hurried out of the room.

Akaashi gave a small grin. He kind of liked that he could make the man all flustered just because he was shirtless. 

Once he had thoroughly dried his hair, he hung the towel around his neck and looked around the bedroom. It wasn't messy, but wasn't as neat as his own bedroom; there were some piles and clutter. On the walls, there were some volleyball posters. There were also many pictures of Bokuto and his friends. 

Akaashi stood up and went over to one of the pictures so he could look closer at it; it was from when Bokuto had played volleyball in high school. He smiled as he found Bokuto in it, as well as Kuroo, Oikawa, and Iwaizumi. It was a team photo and Bokuto seemed like he was the captain.

Just then, Bokuto walked into the bedroom. 

Akaashi turned around at the sound of the bedroom door opening and found himself as flustered as Bokuto had just been. The man was wearing a towel low around his hips, and nothing else. 

Bokuto paused when he saw Akaashi standing there, still shirtless. His eyes trailed down the man’s chest. In that same moment, Akaashi's eyes moved over Bokuto's body. They stood there checking each other out for an almost awkwardly long moment.

Finally, Akaashi stepped in front of Bokuto and put his own towel over his boyfriend's head, gently drying the dripping black and white hair that looked so different when it wasn't gelled up. He massaged the man’s scalp with the towel for a couple minutes.

Bokuto closed his eyes and smiled softly, enjoying the feeling of his hair being dried for him. When his eyes finally opened and met Akaashi's gaze, his cheeks went a light pink color from his blush. 

Akaashi felt his pulse quicken as he glanced between Bokuto's bright eyes and soft looking lips. He wanted to be closer and subconsciously took a step forward. When Bokuto grabbed both of his wrists to pause the drying movements, both of them froze for a moment. Akaashi’s eyes flickered back to Bokuto’s lips. 

Before Akaashi could process what was happening, Bokuto leaned in for a kiss. The man’s lips were soft and warm. Akaashi had never been kissed before, but he found himself kissing back enthusiastically. His heart was beating quickly and his breath started coming faster as he and Bokuto continued to move their lips together.

Akaashi wasn't sure how long a kiss was supposed to last, but he didn't think he wanted to stop yet. 

As though he felt the same, Bokuto pulled Akaashi's body against his own and put one hand around the man’s waist. His other hand moved to Akaashi's jawline. 

Unsure of what to do with his hands, Akaashi just lowered the towel to Bokuto’s shoulders and held the ends of it, using it to pull the man closer. His eyes were shut and he was lost in the moment as his lips moved in time with Bokuto’s.

He didn't know how much time had passed, but he and Bokuto both jumped when they heard the sound of the front door closing. Kuroo called out his arrival right after. Bokuto jumped away from Akaashi and dashed over to the bedroom door. He slammed it closed and locked it. Then he looked down, realizing that his towel had fallen off his waist from the hurried movements. 

Akaashi took in the sight of Bokuto's naked body, though he hadn’t intended to do so. He was blushing as he tried to look away. "We should probably head over to my place now. I'm supposed to be the one to cook dinner."

Bokuto picked up his towel and wrapped it back around himself with a goofy grin. “I’ll get dressed, give me just a minute.”

  
  
  
  
  
  



	10. Clues And Instant Connections

Bokuto, Akaashi and Kuroo walked together to Akaashi's apartment.

"Are you wearing Kou's clothes, Akaashi? Did yours get dirty?" Kuroo asked the question teasingly.

Akaashi was just opening the front door to his apartment and was blushing lightly. Kuroo had been suspicious of what he and Bokuto had been doing that would have made them slam the bedroom door closed, and the man wouldn't stop insinuating about it. 

"Bokuto-san and I played volleyball earlier and I did get sweaty from that, so I borrowed some clothes," Akaashi said evenly as he led the two guests into his apartment. 

Kenma was sitting on the couch playing something on his playstation. His voice was even and dry when he spoke. "Was that the only thing that made you sweaty today, Keiji?"

Akaashi crossed his arms and gave Kenma a hard stare. 

Kenma didn't return the look, but gave a knowing smirk.

"This is my roommate, Kozume Kenma. He prefers to be called Kenma and loves to act like a jerk. Please ignore him when he gets too sassy. It's the only way he knows how to communicate," Akaashi said coolly. He then went to the kitchen to start preparing food. 

Kuroo had grinned widely at Kenma's teasing comment. He walked over and looked at what the blonde man was playing. "I love this game. Can I play too? I'm Kuroo Tetsurou, by the way."

Kenma lazily handed Kuroo a controller without looking at him. "I know who you are, Kuro."

Kuroo took the controller and found himself wondering at the nickname that Kenma had given him. He sat right next to the man on the couch and cleared his throat. "Well, nice to know Akaashi already told you about me... kitten," he said smoothly, coming up with a nickname on the spot that was likely based on the cat picture on Kenma’s sweatshirt.

Kenma blinked slowly, as though slightly irritated. He already knew Kuroo was going to start calling him that and had begrudgingly accepted the fact. He glanced at Kuroo briefly before he started a new level so they could play together.

Kuroo stared at Kenma openly for a moment, as though trying to figure something out, before he finally turned towards the game. Kenma's blonde hair was pulled back into a low, messy bun at the moment. It was a good look. Kuroo smiled as a slight blush spread across his face. 

Bokuto had followed Akaashi into the kitchen and was watching the man put ingredients onto the counter. Akaashi had slipped on a bright yellow apron and it looked really adorable, in Bokuto's opinion. "Can I help? I'm a good kitchen assistant."

Akaashi's mind envisioned several scenarios, all of them ending with Bokuto slicing a finger off or burning himself. The man would be much safer just watching until they could get the exorcism done. "It's okay, Bokuto-san. You're the guest."

Bokuto came up behind Akaashi and hugged the man gently around the waist. "But I'm really good at chopping vegetables, I used to help my grandma cook all the time."

Akaashi leaned back into the hug. Maybe it would be okay to let Bokuto help. He could always control the knife if needed, without the man knowing. He turned to smile at Bokuto softly, then handed the man some carrots and onions to cut up. "If you would take care of these, then? I'll hand the potatoes over when I'm done peeling them, as well."

"Sure!" Bokuto said happily as he started his task.

Akaashi went about peeling potatoes. "You mentioned your grandmother. You must really miss her."

Bokuto's eyes twinkled fondly, and a little sadly, as he replied. "Yeah, she was one of my best friends. My parents both worked late so I spent a lot of time at her house. She was the greatest! She could even see and talk to ghosts! No one else believed her, but I always did. When she died, I worried about what her ghost friends would do without her. She seemed to love them so much."

Akaashi's hands had stilled on the potato he held. Bokuto’s granma must have been a psychic. One much like Suga, it sounded like. Could that have something to do with the vengeful spirit that was attached to Bokuto?

"It's okay if you don't believe me," Bokuto said when he noticed that Akaashi had paused. 

Akaashi cleared his throat and went back to peeling potatoes. "I do believe you, actually. What if I told you that one of the people coming to dinner tonight can see ghosts?"

Bokuto almost cut his finger when he jumped in surprise, but Akaashi was quick to mentally adjust the blade away from his boyfriend's skin. "That's awesome! I wish my grandma was still around, she would have been so happy to meet someone else like her!"

Akaashi smiled warmly at Bokuto. "I'm sure they would have enjoyed each other's company."

As Bokuto and Akaashi finished preparing dinner, Kuroo was losing to Kenma for the 15th game in a row. He groaned and pleaded with the man. "Let's play once more! I feel like I was really close that time!"

Kenma rolled his eyes and spoke dryly, although there was almost some fondness in his voice. "You'll never beat me at this game, Kuro. Though I know I can't stop you from trying."

Kuroo tilted his head and chuckled. "Is that just confidence, or are you trying to say you want to hang out with me again?"

"Both, I guess," Kenma said quietly, as he shut off the playstation. He gave Kuroo a playful grin.

Kuroo smirked as he stared at Kenma. "I think I'm... starting to like you, kitten."

Kenma pretended to check an imaginary watch on his wrist. "You're right on schedule, then." He couldn't have sounded less impressed if he tried, which made the joke even better. 

Kuroo started laughing deeply, holding his stomach as he threw his head back. 

Kenma watched Kuroo laughing with a soft look. It was his first time hearing that laugh in person, not just in a vision.

When Kuroo finally calmed himself, he called out towards the kitchen. "Akaashi, you've got great taste in friends. You're gonna have to share this one with me from now on."

Akaashi peeked over at the couch. Kuroo had put an arm around Kenma and had a large crooked grin on his face. Kenma didn't look as thrilled, but he didn't seem unhappy either. In fact, he looked like someone who had looked into the future and had decided to accept his fate.

_ 'Which is probably exactly what happened,' _ Akaashi thought to himself. He couldn't help but smile. A knock on the door drew his attention, and he walked over to answer it. 

A man with short, neat dark brown hair stood at the door; that was Daichi. Beside him stood a silver haired man, which was Suga.

Suga looked at Akaashi and smiled warmly. "It's been a while, Keiji! I've really been looking forward to seeing you. And your new friends, too!" He looked just past Akaashi's shoulder and winked at a spot where no one was standing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The two chapters after this will be flashbacks.


	11. Bokuto's Grandmother And Her Last Request

**About two years ago:**

Bokuto had just fallen asleep at his grandmother's bedside. 

The woman, who was nearly eighty years old, had been sick for quite a while. Her doctors didn't think she had much time left. She had chosen to stay in her home during her final days, surrounded by the four people that she loved the most. 

Two young men each had a hand resting on Bokuto's shoulders, though the man couldn't see or feel them. 

The first young man could be mistaken for being much older than Bokuto, though he was actually forever frozen at twenty; that was the same age as Bokuto, at the time. He was tall, had the shadow of a goatee on his chin, and had his long brown hair in a bun. 

The second young man was much shorter than the first. He had dark brown hair with a flash of blonde in the front. He had been nineteen when he and the older man beside him had both died in an accident; that was almost sixty years in the past. 

There was a third man in the room that could also be seen and felt by Bokuto's grandmother, but not by Bokuto himself. He had buzzed hair and sharp features. He still looked nineteen; that was the age he had been when he died with his two friends.

The buzz haired man sat on the bed next to the old woman with a hand on top of one of hers. 

She looked at the ghost and smiled softly. "You've stayed with me for all these years, Ryuu. I could never thank you enough." She then turned to the other two ghosts that were beside her grandson. "And you two have my thanks as well. For always looking after mine and Ryuu's son, and our grandson as well."

The shorter man nodded solemnly. "Anything for you, Shimizu-san!"

The man with the bun gave a small, sad smile. "We should thank you for sharing your life with us after we couldn't pass over."

Tanaka wiped his eyes, where tears would be if he could actually cry. "I'm sorry you had to raise our son alone, Kiyoko. I wanted to raise him together and to be known by him as his dad. And I wanted our grandson to be able to play with me, to come to me for advice. But most of all, I wanted to support you."

"You’ve always supported me, Ryuu. You encouraged me whenever things were hard. I have no regrets. I've lived a full life with you, Asahi and Noya by my side," Shimizu said quietly, putting a wrinkled hand to Tanaka's face. 

Tanaka put his own hand, still youthful looking even sixty years after his death, over the hand of the woman he had spent his whole life and beyond loving. 

Shimizu's eyelids grew heavy. "I need to rest. But I wanted to ask one more favor from you three, if I could."

"Anything, just give us the word!" Nishinoya said solemnly. The other two ghosts nodded. 

Shimizu smiled warmly at them; her wrinkled face was still as beautiful as ever. "You'll watch over Koutarou for me, until he finds someone who can love him and look over him in our place? He’s such a clumsy young man, and he rushes into things without thinking. He needs someone dependable and level headed to even him out."

"Of course we will, Kiyoko," Tanaka said, patting her hand. 

Shimizu continued. "That isn't what I wanted you to do for me, though. Once Koutarou has found someone, I want you to go to look for Suga. Have him put you three to rest. Your souls have lingered a very long time for my sake, far longer than is natural. Suga had agreed to let you stay until my time is finished, but I've sent him a letter detailing my wish for you three to stay a little longer."

Tanaka leaned down to kiss Shimizu's cheek softly. "We have no complaints about the way we've spent our extra time here. I'll be glad to rest, once my reason for staying… once you're not here anymore."

Nishinoya and Asahi reached out and held hands with each other. They then nodded at Shimizu and Tanaka. "We’ll do our best to watch over your grandson, and then we’ll follow your last request," Asahi said solemnly.

  
  
  
  
  



	12. Three Yokai Who Just Wanted To Help

**A different perspective from the last few days:**

Tanaka, Nishinoya and Asahi sat on the wing of a large plane, right outside Bokuto's window. 

"I wish we had a way to make the plane less shaky. It's making Koutarou feel uneasy," Tanaka said, stretching his arms above his head. 

Nishinoya was leaning back against Asahi, sitting on the man’s lap. Suddenly he stood up and grinned. "I know! Let's try to use spiritual pressure to keep the plane steady. I'll push up from the bottom and Ryuu, you can push from the top!"

Asahi frowned. "You shouldn't… I think that's a bad idea, hun." 

Nishinoya rushed away despite the warning.

Tanaka had already stood up and started pressing down on the wing. "Great idea, Noya!"

Nishinoya floated under the wing and started pressing up with his spiritual energy, using all his strength.

Asahi stood up and floated down next to Nishinoya. "I have a bad feeling about this…"

Nishinoya winked at his boyfriend. "Babe, it's fine! Trust me on this!"

Before Asahi could respond, the engine reacted to the energy fluctuation of the spiritual pressure and exploded, blowing off half the wing.

"Oh shit!" Tanaka yelled as he peeked over the side of the broken edge. 

"Quick, everyone go under the plane and try to hold it up!" Nishinoya yelled as he hurried to float directly under the plane.

Asahi sighed and followed the others under the plane. Those two never listened to him back when they were all still alive, and nothing had changed about that after they died. He’d spent many years as a ghost; and each of those years had been filled with worrying about Tanaka and Nishinoya’s shenanigans.

The three ghosts did their best to push the plane up, but it started to roll to one side as it descended.

"Over to the other wing, hold it up from underneath!" Tanaka ordered. 

The three spirits floated over to the undamaged wing and started pressing up, but nothing happened at first. Then, quite suddenly, the plane started to level out. 

"It's working!" Nishinoya said with a satisfied grin.

The plane soon came over land and then set down gently in a field. 

"Wow, we were better at landing that than I thought we’d be!" Tanaka said with a smirk.

"We fixed that little mess just fine, didn’t we?" Nishinoya said proudly, smacking his friend on the shoulder.

Asahi leaned over his boyfriend and wrapped his arms around the short man. "I really doubt that was actually us…."

  
  


\-------------

  
  


The three ghosts were walking with Bokuto and his friends, laughing along as Oikawa and Kuroo teased Bokuto about Akaashi.

Tanaka spotted a bottle sitting up on the sidewalk. "Koutarou might trip on that! I'll move it!" 

"No, I'll get it!" Nishinoya yelled. 

They jumped at the bottle together, accidentally knocking it over with their spiritual pressure. It rolled right under Bokuto's foot, making the owlish haired man trip and fall into the road. A bus started honking as it drove up the street towards Bokuto.

"I won't let you hurt my grandson!" Tanaka yelled, jumping in front of the bus and holding his hands out. 

Nishinoya rushed out next to his best friend, holding his hands out as well. "Let's stop this thing together, man!" 

They nodded at each other confidently. But as the bus reached them, it passed right through them. It was Asahi who saw a masked man rush over and sit on Bokuto, lifting the bus to save the owlish haired man. 

Tanaka and Nishinoya turned around and saw Akaashi set down the bus after passing it over himself. They turned and bowed to him, even though he couldn't see or hear them. 

"You have our thanks, kind psychic!" They said together. 

Asahi rubbed a hand over his face. If he still had a living body, he was sure he’d have passed out from stress. He stood on the sidewalk with his arms crossed as Nishinoya and Tanaka came back over to him. He guessed he would always have his hands full while watching out for his boyfriend and Tanaka. That was true when they were still alive, and just as true after the car accident that the three of them had been in with a pregnant Shimizu, so many years before. 

  
  


\-------------

  
  


Tanaka was leaning on the desk Akaashi sat at, which was right beside Bokuto’s desk; he was giving his best intimidating expression. "So, you think you can get close and cozy with my grandson, do you?"

Nishinoya was standing behind Tanaka with arms crossed as he helped stare down Akaashi. 

"What are you two hoping to accomplish by glaring at someone who can't see you?" Asahi asked calmly from behind them.

Tanaka straightened up his stance. "I just want to know if he’s a respectable and dependable young man. If he’s someone Kiyoko would have accepted."

Nishinoya jumped up on the desk to make himself taller and stared down at Akaashi. "He seems like he’s hiding something, if you ask me."

Asahi sighed. "He seems nice, and Koutarou really seems to like him. That's the important thing."

The three spirits talked among themselves, debating the dependability of Akaashi.

When Bokuto and Akaashi went to take a picture together, Tanaka jumped in the shot right next to Bokuto. Nishinoya squeezed in on Bokuto's other side. They both made silly faces at the camera. 

"No one will be able to see you guys photo bombing them, except maybe a psychic like Suga. You two sure have a lot of energy to put into this," Asahi said in an exasperated voice. 

Tanaka puffed out his chest. "Well, of course we do! We’re going to fulfill Kiyoko's final request if it's the last thing we do!"

Nishinoya nodded vigorously in agreement. 

Asahi smiled softly at them. "It will be the last thing we do, remember?"

  
  


\------------

  
  


Tanaka and Nishinoya were watching Akaashi in the kitchen. Asahi was sitting on the couch watching Kenma and Kuroo play video games. 

"He seems to be able to cook pretty good," said Nishinoya as he watched Akaashi peeling potatoes.

Tanaka clicked his tongue. “He knows his way around peeling potatoes at least. Oh, look at how Koutarou's holding the knife. I'm gonna help him a bit!" 

Tanaka put his hand over Bokuto's and tried to use his spiritual energy to guide the knife, but he sent too much out when he heard Akaashi mention that someone who could see ghosts was coming to dinner. The knife almost cut Bokuto.

Tanaka decided he wouldn't help anymore. 

"Hey babe, someone who can see spirits is coming to dinner! Should we hide?" Nishinoya called over to his boyfriend. 

Asahi thought about it. "I don't think we need to hide, necessarily. We can just explain to them that we have a medium who agreed to let us stay around for a while longer. And that he will be putting us to rest himself."

Tanaka made fists with his hands. "If that doesn't work, we can intimidate him!"

Nishinoya made fists as well, squaring up next to his best friend. 

"That would definitely _not_ be a good idea, you guys. Please don't," Asahi said desperately. 

The two other ghosts ignored Asahi, and played at fighting each other instead. It wasn't long before they heard a knock at the door. Nishinoya and Tanaka stood right behind Akaashi and held their fists up as the door opened. 

They were shocked to see Suga standing there, who has had known Shimizu and would definitely recognize them; it was the very man who was supposed to be putting them to rest.

"Suga?!" They both said in surprise.

Suga greeted Akaashi. He then looked at Tanaka and Nishinoya, winking at them with a sly smile.

  
  
  
  
  



	13. The Cat's Out Of The Bag

Suga and Daichi came into Akaashi's apartment, and Suga looked especially amused.

"That sure was an interesting photo you sent me this morning, Keiji. I saw some things I didn't expect," Suga said lightly, smiling at Kenma and Kuroo (and Asahi, who he could also see) and giving them a wave. 

"I've already told Bokuto-san you can see ghosts, will you come look at him. Oh, there next to Kenma is Kuroo Tetsurou. And then this is Bokuto Koutarou," Akashi said, gesturing to Bokuto. 

Kuroo waved at Suga and Daichi from the couch, where he still had an arm over Kenma. 

Bokuto came forward and smiled, bowing at the two newcomers. "Nice to meet you! My grandma could see ghosts too!"

Suga smiled warmly at Bokuto. "I knew your grandmother, actually. I spoke with her several times before she passed away. I know her ghost friends, as well," he said, looking at three different spots in the room when he mentioned ghosts. 

Daichi cleared his throat. "This is Sugawara Koushi, by the way. And I'm Sawamura Daichi, but you can just call me Daichi.”

"Nice to meet you! So you knew my grandma, Sugawara?!" Bokuto said excitedly, bouncing on his heels as he looked at Suga.

"What about his aura, Suga? Does he need an exorcism?" Akaashi asked impatiently, frowning at his friend.

Suga laughed. "Call me Suga please, Bokuto. I feel like I know you so well already. Your grandmother spoke of you often. And Keiji, his aura is fine. He does happen to have three spirits attached to him, but they’re not malicious. They have good intentions and are not corrupted. Though even the best intentions can come out wrong sometimes. You understand that more than the rest of us don't you, Asahi?"

Everyone looked next to Kenma, where Suga had addressed someone they couldn't see.

Daichi grinned at his boyfriend. "Maybe you could make them visible, Suga? You could probably maintain it for at least twenty minutes if all three of them are here."

Suga clasped his hands together in excitement. "Of course! I recently discovered that I can make spirits visible for short periods of time. You won't be able to hear them or feel them though."

Suga closed his eyes and concentrated. A gust of wind-like energy shot out all around him, extending over the whole room. 

Kenma was startled by the sudden appearance of Asahi next to him and jumped onto Kuroo's lap. Meanwhile, Kuroo was just as surprised by Kenma being on his lap as he was at the appearance of Asahi.

Bokuto and Akaashi turned to stare at Tanaka and Nishinoya.

The two ghosts were still standing by the door, gaping at Suga in surprise. When they realized that everyone could really see them, they both ran over to hug Bokuto. Their mouths were moving, but only Suga could hear them. 

Suga cleared his throat. "Bokuto, this is your grandfather, Tanaka Ryuunosuke. And his best friend Nishinoya Yuu. There on the couch is Nishinoya's boyfriend, Azumane Asahi. They were in a car accident with your grandmother when she was twenty. She was newly pregnant with your father at the time."

Everyone was listening to Suga as he continued speaking. "You grandmother and your father were the only ones who survived the accident. But there were such strong bonds between her and the others that Tanaka, Nishinoya and Asahi didn't pass on. They became benevolent yokai instead. They stayed with your grandmother until she passed away and have been watching over you since, at her request."

Bokuto looked at Tanaka, who was still hugging him. It was hard to believe that this man who looked right around his own age was actually his grandfather. Although now that he was looking closely, he recognized Tanaka. He also recognized Nishinoya and Asahi. The three men had been in photo albums that Bokuto’s grandmother had shown him when he was younger. 

Akaashi was looking at Tanaka and the other ghosts, but his thoughts were of a different sort. Did these guys do any actual 'watching over'? Would Bokuto be better or worse off without them around? Is Bokuto just naturally careless and clumsy when it comes to his own safety? 

Suga continued his story. "I met Bokuto's grandmother several years before she died. I was drawn to her house because I felt a strong spiritual presence. I offered to put the yokai that were there with her to rest, but I was surprised to find that Shimizu could see the three spirits and wanted them to stay."

As he looked at the three ghosts with a smile, Suga continued talking. "Usually I wouldn't have let spirits linger. They can be polluted by evil if they stay too long in between our world and theirs. But Shimizu told me their story and I was touched. I could feel that Shimizu wasn't long for this world, so I agreed to let them stay until she was gone. I kept in regular contact with Shimizu until her passing."

It was quiet, everyone's interest was captured by the story as Suga continued. 

"I received a letter from her a couple years ago. It arrived right before she died. She said her time was very close, but she wanted me to let her three yokai stay just a little longer to watch over Bokuto."

Suga turned to look at Akaashi and Bokuto with a smile. "She was worried, because Bokuto can be a little clumsy and careless. He also has a big, sensitive heart that's easily broken. She wanted someone level headed and supportive for him. I think Bokuto has certainly found that in Keiji."

Tanaka and Nishinoya both jumped at Akaashi, making intimidating faces and appearing to talk over each other. Asahi rushed over and seemed to be talking to the two wild looking men in a reproachful way. 

"They don't seem to like me…" Akaashi said while frowning. 

Bokuto grabbed Akaashi into his arms and looked at the three spirits with a pout. "How could you not like my boyfriend? He’s the best!!"

"They think he’s hiding something," Suga said. His face grew mischievous. "Maybe we should go ahead and show them what it is. Kenma, lend me a hand?"

Before Akaashi could say anything, Kenma transported off Kuroo's lap and appeared next to the table. 

Kuroo did a double take when he saw Kenma at the table and no longer on his lap. 

Suga walked quickly to the opposite side of the table from Kenma. It was set with plates, cups, and dishes of food. Suga and Kenma grabbed the tablecloth from either side and yanked it up hard, tossing everything up in the air. 

"Think fast, Keiji," Kenma said playfully. He caught Kuroo's surprised eyes and winked at the man. 

Kuroo stood up and moved next to Bokuto; both men had looks of disbelief. Instead of falling and shattering, the plates and cups were frozen in the air. The food had moved out of the serving dishes, but had paused midair instead of spilling.

Bokuto's eyes moved to Akaashi, who was still in his arms. Akaashi had one hand slightly raised towards the table.

"Did… did… are you… did you… are you doing that?!" Bokuto sputtered. 

Akaashi carefully made everything set back on the table in its proper spot. He braced himself as he confessed his secret to Bokuto. "I'm also the one who saved you from the plane and the bus. I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner, Bokuto-san."

Bokuto didn't look upset; he looked both relieved and happy. "Sorry? You don't have to be sorry! This is… it's… you're so amazing, 'Kaashi! Thank you for saving me both times!"

Akaashi blushed as Bokuto lifted him up in a hug and spun him around. 

When Bokuto set Akaashi down, he pressed a kiss to the man’s lips and then smiled the smile that Akaashi liked so much.

Tanaka, Nishinoya, and Asahi were also staring at the table in shock. Only Suga and the ghosts heard Asahi smuggly say, "I told you two that it wasn't us that landed that plane."

Kuroo put his hands behind his head and smirked at Kenma. "So that's why you look familiar. Well, since you wear that cat mask, I guess I picked a good nickname for you. Right, kitten?" 

Kenma teleported himself right in front of Kuroo and smirked. 

Kuroo jumped a little in surprise, but then put his arms around Kenma’s shoulders and whispered shyly. "You're pretty cool, you know."

"I know," Kenma replied. He gave a genuine smile as he stepped closer to Kuroo, wrapping his arms around the man’s waist.

Kuroo chuckled before he leaned down slowly, bringing his face close to Kenma's. He gave the man time to move away or refuse the action. When Kenma remained still and gave him an expectant grin, he moved to close the distance between them. 

Right before their lips touched, Kenma transported them out of the living room and into his bedroom. He didn't want an audience for their first kiss. 

"Now that everyone's happy, how about we eat? I'm pretty hungry," Suga said cheerfully.

Daichi laughed heartily and hugged his boyfriend. "You always say that after you do exorcisms too."

“Fun and excitement always does work up an appetite,” Suga replied playfully. 

"What would you have done if I had just let you ruin all the food?" Akaashi asked dryly. Bokuto still held him close, and they both looked at Suga. 

Suga laughed merrily. "You wouldn't let food that you made go to waste, and you hate messes. I wouldn't gamble my dinner if I wasn't sure of the outcome. Besides, Kenma texted me right before I got here."

"That little foresight abusing asshole," Akaashi said irritably. He saw Kenma smirking at him from where he and Kuroo had just reappeared by the table.

The group enjoyed dinner together and stayed up late into the night talking. Akaashi and Kenma shared more about their powers, and Bokuto got to learn all kinds of things about his grandmother from the three ghosts. Suga acted as a middle man, repeating the words the spirits said so that everyone else could hear.

The group of men had a wonderful time together.

When Suga and Daichi finally left for the night, they took Asahi, Tanaka and Nishinoya with them. They all agreed that Akaashi was someone that Shimizu would have approved of, so it was time for the ghosts to honor Shimizu's last wish and finally be put to rest. The ghosts only requested that they be put to rest at Shimizu's grave, which Suga agreed to without hesitation. 


	14. Years Of Waiting

**A few weeks later:**

It was early in the morning and Akaashi had just woken up. He felt Bokuto's body pressed against his back and smiled. He took a few minutes to appreciate the man’s warmth and to adjust to being awake while he thought back on the past few weeks.

The ghosts had been put to rest and Bokuto’s luck improved slightly as a result, though the man was still clumsy. But at least he hadn’t had any other life threatening situations since then.

Kuroo and Bokuto both ended up sleeping over more often than not, which was surprisingly nice. The four men got along pretty well. It was sometimes overwhelming for Kenma to have two extra people in the house, but he was getting used to it.

At first, Akaashi felt like it was strange having someone besides Kenma, Suga and Daichi know about his abilities. Two someones, actually, since Kuroo knew as well. Akaashi still couldn't believe the stunt that Kenma and Suga pulled at the dinner party.

He was also surprised by how forward Kenma had been with Kuroo.

Generally speaking, Kenma avoided interacting with other people unless strictly necessary. He also tried not to look too far or too often into the future, especially his own future. He said it took away from the experience of living if he already knew everything that was coming. But he had definitely known that Kuroo would be his before they had even spoken. 

Kenma had never mentioned Kuroo to Akaashi though, so he had no idea how long his friend had known about Kuroo and their future together. He wondered how Kenma decided what to keep and what to try to change, when the man got glimpses into the future. 

Kenma once explained that the future situations he sees are just the most likely possibility, and that if someone acts purposely to change that future, the next most likely will happen instead. There were countless possibilities for everything that was set to happen, but it would be blurry and lacking in details if he tried to account for too many possibilities within the same situation. Since he had learned how to block out most visions, he had a lot of control over what he saw. But there were still some that came through anyway despite that; usually they were the ones indicating a disaster, like the plane crash would have been.

Akaashi was glad he didn't hold the responsibility for that power. It seemed stressful. 

He turned himself towards Bokuto and curled against his boyfriend's chest. They were both shirtless and in only their boxers; it was very cozy. Kenma liked to run the air conditioner at a very cold temperature, so the room was chilly. It was perfect for cuddling under a bunch of blankets.

Bokuto finally stirred into consciousness, and he wrapped his arms around Akaashi tightly. "Good morning, 'Kaashi," he sleepily mumbled. 

Akaashi smiled at the sleepy man. "Good morning, Bokuto-san. Did you sleep well?"

"Mhmm, you're the best to cuddle," Bokuto said, pulling Akaashi closer to emphasize his point. 

Akaashi smiled against Bokuto's bare chest and wondered how he had ever managed to sleep soundly without Bokuto beside him before now. Something about being near Bokuto made him feel more secure and content. He was happy that Bokuto was his boyfriend.

Bokuto pressed a kiss to Akaashi's forehead and then leaned his chin over the top of the man’s hair. He was feeling the same kind of way as Akaashi. He stroked down the man’s back with one hand as he spoke. "I was thinking... can we call each other by our first names now?" 

Akaashi blushed slightly at the thought of calling Bokuto by his first name. It felt so intimate. Of course, they were currently cuddling in just their boxers, and that was pretty intimate too. "We could do that, if you'd like," he finally said.

Bokuto hummed happily. "Cool! Thanks, Keiji."

Akaashi found himself grinning as his blush grew darker. He had never before felt so excited just from hearing his name. "You're welcome, Ko... Koutarou."

There were three quick knocks at the bedroom door. It started to open, but Akaashi flicked his wrist and shut the door with his mind, locking it while he was at it. He wanted to enjoy cuddling Bokuto in peace for a little while longer. 

  
  


\----------------------------

  
  


Kuroo stood outside Akaashi's bedroom door. He had gone to ask if they wanted breakfast but the door slammed closed as soon as he had started to open it. He chuckled as he called out through the door. "I can take a hint, sorry to bother you!"

He walked back into Kenma's bedroom, which was right across the hall. 

Kenma was in bed, under several blankets that were pulled up to his chest. The shirt he was wearing was visible and it was one of Kuroo’s. He wasn't really awake yet; he was resting with an arm over his face to block out the light coming in from the window.

Kuroo thought the man looked precious while wearing one of his shirts. Kenma had managed to steal a bunch of his shirts over the past few weeks, but he didn't mind. He himself had sweatpants on but no shirt. He had goosebumps from the cold air blasting through the vents in the room, so he crawled back in bed next to Kenma. 

"They were doing sexy time stuff or something. I don't think they'll want breakfast for a while," Kuroo said, settling in next to Kenma on the bed and propping himself up on one elbow so he could look at the sleepy man.

A barely audible hum was Kenma's reply. 

"Doesn't seem like you'll be ready for a while either," Kuroo said playfully, tracing his fingers along Kenma's arm and giving the man a soft look.

Another short hum came from Kenma, making Kuroo chuckle. He leaned over Kenma's face and gently kissed the man's lips. As he went to pull away, Kenma nipped his lower lip to keep him close. Kuroo smiled into the kiss as he wrapped an arm around Kenma's waist.

Kenma finally took his arm off his face and put it around Kuroo's shoulders, kissing more deeply. He then went to bite at Kuroo's jawline.

"You're gonna leave marks if you keep that up," Kuroo whispered in a husky voice. He didn't sound unhappy about it.

Kenma hummed confidently. 

"You're kind of cute when you're all feisty in the morning," Kuroo replied playfully. Kenma bit his neck in response. 

Kuroo chuckled and then looked thoughtful. “Hey, Kenma?”

“Hm?” Kenma replied as he nuzzled against Kuroo’s neck.

A moment passed before Kuroo continued. “How long have you known we were going to get together? You already knew when we met, right? So I was just wondering… how long you’ve been waiting for me.”

Kenma pulled back so he could look at Kuroo’s face. He was blushing slightly as he answered. “Well… since I was fourteen.”

Kuroo raised his eyebrows. “So you’ve known for years?”

“Yeah,” Kenma replied quietly, still blushing. 

“Did you have a vision of us meeting like we did a few weeks ago?”

Kenma shook his head and glanced away. “No. I saw you at the age you were back then. So you’d have been fifteen.”

“What was I doing in the vision?” Kuroo asked curiously. 

Kenma gave a small grin. “Playing volleyball. I saw you make the winning point.”

Kuroo whistled and then smirked. “No wonder you fell for me. I was pretty cool, huh?”

“I didn’t fall for you then. I had no idea why I was seeing you, and thought it was annoying when I kept seeing you after that,” Kenma replied dryly.

Kuroo gave a small pout. “You can’t be immune to my charms. What else did you see me do?”

Kenma closed his eyes as he thought about it. “I saw you when you were sixteen, at your birthday party. You were dared to kiss a guy and it seemed like you enjoyed it way more than you wanted to admit.”

“Oh… you saw that,” Kuroo said with an embarrassed blush.

Kenma looked away awkwardly. “I also saw you kiss a guy at a volleyball game. You two were in a bathroom. It didn’t seem like you knew each other that well.”

Kuroo reached over and tilted Kenma’s chin so they were facing each other. “Let me tell you a secret. Those were the only two people I ever kissed. And those kisses were nothing compared to the ones I’ve shared with you.”

Kenma rolled his eyes, but looked a little happy to hear that. “It’s not like I was jealous.”

“Good, ‘cause you had no reason to be,” Kuroo said cheekily, giving Kenma’s chin a little squeeze before letting it go. “What other stuff did you see?”

Kenma paused thoughtfully. “I saw you when you had just graduated high school. You encouraged Iwaizumi to tell Oikawa how he felt about him.”

“They got together right after that,” Kuroo said softly as he smiled at the memory. “I’d forgotten how nervous Hajime was about confessing to Tooru.”

“I also saw you when you were at Bokuto’s grandma’s funeral. You were really supportive and Bokuto seemed to appreciate your comfort,” Kenma said as he reached to hold Kuroo’s hand. 

Kuroo sighed sadly and brought Kenma’s hand to his cheek so he could lean against it. “That was really hard. Bokuto’s grandma was pretty awesome, and he was wrecked by losing her.”

Kenma cleared his throat and started blushing again. “I actually got visions of you all the time. Basically from when I was fourteen until we met, I was getting multiple visions of you every day. So I felt really close to you. It was almost like we were friends all that time, but it was one sided because you had no idea who I was.”

“That’s… Kenma… couldn’t you have come to find me sooner?” Kuroo looked a little bit heartbroken over finding out that he had missed out on years of knowing Kenma. 

“No,” Kenma said with a frown. “For some reason, I wasn’t able to intentionally have visions of you. They came at random and the backgrounds were always kind of blurry, so I never knew where to find you. And if I’d have tried to meet you before it was the right time, we might not have clicked. Or I might have messed things up for Keiji and Bokuto, since Bokuto’s your friend and keiji’s my friend. The future isn’t something to be messed with, not without good reason.”

Kuroo hummed thoughtfully. “Don’t you mess with it when you and Akaashi save people?”

Kenma glanced at Kuroo and gave a small shrug. “Saving someone is a pretty good reason. But sometimes I do worry about what we’re messing with when we change the future. And Keiji can be so damn reckless when he saves people.”

“What about when you predict investments and the stock markets or whatever?” Kuroo asked with a teasing grin.

Kenma gave Kuroo a mischievous smirk. “I’ll tell you something I’ve never even told Keiji. I don’t use my powers to predict the outcomes of my investments. I just get lucky.”

“Ha! No way!” Kuroo was grinning widely. “That’s kind of awesome!”

Kenma just shrugged and cuddled against Kuroo’s chest. 

“You know, Hajime and Tooru really want to meet you,” Kuroo said as he ran a hand through Kenma’s hair.

Kenma closed his eyes and pressed his face into Kuroo’s neck. “I’m not ready to meet them yet. I’m still getting used to Bokuto. And I’ve seen how loud they can be, from visions.”

“No rush at all,” Kuroo said softly as he kissed Kenma’s forehead. “I’m fine with keeping you all to myself.”

  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	15. Soon To Be Roomates

**Three Months Later:**

Bokuto and Kuroo had just walked into Akaashi and Kenma's apartment. As of tomorrow, it would be their apartment too. They were moving in, since they already spent most of their time there. The sight that met them as they looked around was a strange one, though they had seen it before.

There were dishes floating around the kitchen and the sink was full of soapy water; the dishes were seemingly dipping themselves into the soapy water and being scrubbed by a washcloth that no one was holding. 

Dust cloths were running themselves along edges and surfaces. 

The vacuum was running along the floor and furniture was lifting out of the way as it approached. 

In all areas of the apartment, things were being cleaned without the appearance of anyone moving anything manually.

Akaashi sat on the couch, controlling all the cleaning while he read a book. Kenma was beside him playing a game on his phone. 

"Man, it's been months and I still don't feel used to seeing things flying around like this," Kuroo said playfully, dropping on the couch beside Kenma. 

Bokuto climbed around Akaashi and slid down onto the couch behind the man. "Thanks for cleaning, Keiji! We could have helped though. Don't feel like you have to clean up after us once we move in." 

Akaashi closed his book and sent it to his room as he leaned back against Bokuto's chest, pulling his boyfriend's arms around himself. He turned his head so he could kiss Bokuto before he replied. "I don't mind doing it, it doesn't take that much energy. Plus, I like taking care of the cleaning."

Kenma scoffed lightly as he adjusted himself to lean comfortably against Kuroo's side. "You just have impossibly high cleaning standards and don't trust anyone to help."

"It's only  _ you _ I don't trust, actually. Last time I asked you to do the dishes, you just threw away all the dirty ones and bought a whole new set," Akaashi said, irritated at the memory. He had really liked their old set.

Kenma glanced at Akaashi and deadpanned. "Oh, so you noticed." 

Kuroo snorted out a loud laugh as he slung an arm over his boyfriend. 

Bokuto was snickering as he pressed his face into Akaashi's shoulder. 

"It was kind of obvious. They were a completely different color than the rest of the dishes we still had," Akaashi said dryly. 

Kenma just hummed briefly in response and moved onto Kuroo's lap, curling against the man.

Kuroo stroked Kenma's hair gently, then kissed the man’s forehead. "Need a nap, kitten?"

Kenma hummed affirmatively and snuggled closer. 

Akaashi rolled his eyes at the pair. "Kenma always gets tired when someone tries to call him on his bullshit. You're going to spoil him, Kuroo."

Kuroo stood up and held Kenma in his arms. Then he walked towards Kenma's bedroom. "Nothing I'd rather do than spoil him. And he spoils me in a lot of ways too, if you know what I mean," he said with a wink before he and Kenma disappeared into the bedroom. 

Bokuto laid down behind Akaashi, pulling the man down next to him. 

The couch suddenly lifted them up as the vacuum traveled underneath it, all by Akaashi’s doing. He turned so that he was on his back while Bokuto wrapped an arm around him. 

"I'm excited to live with you, Keiji," Bokuto said happily. 

Akaashi gave a small chuckle. "We practically live together already. You're always here, so not much will change."

Bokuto pressed a kiss to Akaashi's head. "Well, it’ll feel different to me. I'm really happy! I love you a lot, you know."

Akaashi blushed. This was only the fourth time that Bokuto had told him that he loved him. It still gave him a warm thrill. "I love you too, Koutarou," he said softly as he leaned in to kiss the man.

Bokuto's phone pinged from an incoming text. He reached past Akaashi to grab it off the coffee table once the couch was back on the floor, then clicked to open the message. 

  
  


**Oikawa:**

Received at 2:30pm

_ Ya-hoo! Iwa-chan and I will be at your place at 9am tomorrow to start moving stuff. Can't wait to meet Kenma, finally! Kuroo is so rude, keeping him from us for months while showing up to class all the time with hickeys and bite marks like some horny teenager.  _

**Oikawa:**

Sent 2:31pm

_ Kenma is excited to meet you too, I think. Or at least, he doesn't seem unhappy about meeting you? I'm not sure. I can't read him as well as Keiji can. I appreciate your help with moving, thanks again for offering! _

**Oikawa:**

Received 2:33pm

_ How else were we going to get to meet the mysterious boyfriend? Tell Keiji I'm sad he never invites us over, by the way.  _

Akaashi hummed when Bokuto showed him the text messages. 

Oikawa had done what he could to convince Kuroo to introduce his boyfriend, but Kuroo refused him every time. He was even more insistent once he learned the boyfriend in question was also Akaashi's roommate. He didn’t like being left out of the loop.

But Kenma had been nervous about meeting Oikawa and Iwaizumi. Just because he warmed up immediately to Kuroo, and had accepted Bokuto's presence, didn't mean that he was suddenly more keen on socializing. 

"Are you guys all packed up at your old place? I can come over and help you finish if you need me to," Akaashi offered. 

Bokuto grinned. "Everything is pretty much done. I was thinking about going to get some beer for when we’re done moving stuff, as a way to thank Hajime and Tooru for their help. Want to go on a grocery store date with me?" 

They both heard a loud moan coming from Kenma's bedroom.

Akaashi stood up and pulled Bokuto after him. "Yes, please. Let's go before we have to hear anymore of Kenma 'spoiling' Kuroo."

"I want to spoil you like that too, Keiji," Bokuto said cheerfully as they walked out the door. 

Akaashi let out a small sigh as he smiled at Bokuto. Maybe the four of them sharing an apartment wasn't their most thought out plan. But when it came down to it, Akaashi didn’t want to live apart from Kenma; the man was his very best friend. And since he also wanted to live with Bokuto, the obvious solution was to move in all together.

He hoped it would work out in the long run.


	16. It's Not A Secret If Everyone Knows

Oikawa had just set down a large box in what was now Bokuto and Kuroo's living room. Iwaizumi, Bokuto and Kuroo all came in behind him with a box each. 

"That's the last of it!" Kuroo said, wiping some sweat off his forehead. 

Akaashi was in the kitchen cooking lunch for the group. He looked over at the pile of boxes in the living room with a grin. He was looking forward to unpacking it all with his telekinesis later in the day, since he couldn't openly use his powers in front of Iwaizumi and Oikawa. 

Bokuto walked into the kitchen and sat up on a counter, smiling at Akaashi from his perch. Akaashi walked over to him and gave him a quick kiss before returning to stirring food at the stove. 

"So, when do you think Kenma will wake up? I'm really looking forward to meeting him!" Oikawa said, sitting himself at the table. 

"I’m not sure. He was up pretty late. I'll wake him up for lunch though, if he isn't up by then," Kuroo replied, grabbing a few water bottles from the fridge and passing them out to everyone. 

Iwaizumi sat next to Oikawa at the table. "Do you guys want us to hang around and help unpack stuff after lunch?" 

"That's okay, Keiji’s going to do most of it for us tonight. He really likes sorting!" Bokuto spoke as he jumped off the counter and moved over to where his skateboard was sitting on top of a box. 

Oikawa watched as Bokuto set the board on the floor and stood on it. "I didn't know you owned a skateboard, Koutarou."

"I bought this with Keiji when we first started dating. You should see him skate, he’s really good!" Bokuto said proudly.

Iwaizumi grinned; his voice was equally proud. "Probably not better than Tooru, though. He used to skate competitively when he wasn’t busy with volleyball."

Oikawa blushed slightly at Iwaizumi's praise. "I'm way out of practice now. But hey, do you guys want to go to the skate park after lunch? Keiji and I could do some tricks and show off a bit, if Koutarou doesn't mind me borrowing his board."

Kuroo grinned and sat at the table next to Oikawa. "Should we make it a competition?"

"Oh, yeah! What should the winner get?" Bokuto said excitedly as he walked over to help set the table. 

Kenma suddenly walked into the room, rubbing his tired eyes. "How about the loser buys dinner for us. And pie for dessert.”

Kuroo's face brightened up when he saw Kenma and held his arms out to his sleepy boyfriend. "You missed all the heavy lifting, kitten. We’re about to eat lunch."

Kenma sat on Kuroo's lap and leaned the side of his head against his boyfriend's shoulder. "I timed my arrival perfectly then." He looked over at Iwaizumi and Oikawa. "Bokuto talks about you two a lot. Nice to meet you, Tooru and Hajime."

Oikawa smiled brightly. "I've waited a long time to meet you, Kenma."

"Nice to meet you," said Iwaizumi with a friendly nod. 

Bokuto brought over some serving dishes with salad and bread rolls and set them on the table, then took a seat next to Kuroo. 

Akaashi was in the kitchen and had just grabbed the big pot of stew off the stove. As he was carrying it to the table, one of the pot holders he held slipped. He burned his wrist when it touched the hot metal. On instinct, he let go of the pot and moved his hand up so he could look at his wrist. "Shit, I burned myself," he hissed. 

Bokuto jumped up and came to Akaashi’s side to look at the burn. “How bad is it?”

"You okay?" Kuroo asked, frowning with concern.

Kenma was looking at his friend with a worried frown.

"I'll be fine, it only just grazed me," said Akaashi as he finished checking his burn.

Unlike everyone else, Iwaizumi and Oikawa were not looking at Akaashi. Rather, they were looking at the pot of stew that was hovering in front of him. The occurrence of the pot floating in the air didn't seem to be phasing the other four people in the room. But Oikawa's eyes were wide with shock.

"Uh… what's up with that?" Iwaizumi said hesitantly as he pointed at the pot. 

Akaashi's attention shifted to the pot of stew, which he had automatically caught with his mind after he let it go. Then he looked up at Iwaizumi and Oikawa. Both of them were staring at him wordlessly. Akaashi wasn't sure what to say either.

Kenma decided that it was best to just get it all out there. "Keiji and I have psychic powers. He can make stuff float with his mind. I can teleport and see glimpses of the future," he said in a casual voice, as though this was information equal with what brand of toothpaste someone preferred.

Oikawa's eyes brightened with excitement. "Please tell me that you two are the ones who wear the masks and do hero work in secret!"

Akaashi grinned sheepishly. "That's right."

Oikawa was so thrilled that he bolted up out of his chair. 

Iwaizumi put a hand on his boyfriend’s arm. "Don't interrogate them, Tooru. They probably had a good reason for keeping it a secret."

"Are you telling me that you can move anything with your mind?" Oikawa asked as he nodded at Akaashi.

Akaashi gave a small nod. "Almost anything."

Oikawa cleared his throat. "So what I'm hearing is that we moved all these boxes when you could have done that single handedly, and not even broken a sweat?" 

Kuroo started laughing. "You're the one who insisted you wanted to move boxes for us!"

"It would’ve been tiring for Keiji to move the boxes by himself," Kenma said, slightly defensive under his mellow tone. 

"Besides, he’s going to unpack everything for us later, with his mind!'' Bokuto said excitedly, gesturing his hands all around Akaashi's head.

Oikawa sat back down, his face still shocked. Something dawned on him just then; it made him smirk and narrow his eyes. "Well, if we all can see and believe this is happening, then I don't want to hear any more denial about aliens being real! If this is possible, so is that!" He crossed his arms, giving everyone a sharp look and then landing his eyes on his boyfriend. 

Iwaizumi shrugged. "Fair enough. I won't tease you about aliens from now on.” He looked over at Kenma with a curious expression. “So, you said you can teleport?"

Kenma nodded. "I can teleport myself and one other person at a time to pretty much anywhere.”

Oikawa spoke up next. “You said you could see the future, didn’t you?”

There was another nod from Kenma. “The glimpses I get of the future would be best described as strong likelihoods. They’ll happen unless I act or direct someone else to act against them. In that case, the next most likely situation happens. I can see a couple of the alternatives at a time for situations I want to change, but there are endless alternatives. It would be impossible for me to see all of them at once." 

"That's pretty amazing," said Oikawa. 

Iwaizumi was nodding in agreement. 

"What about you, Keiji? What can you move with your mind? Oh, can you make me fly?!" Oikawa asked with childlike excitement.

Akaashi gave a small grin as he floated the pot of stew to the middle of the table and served some to everyone without moving his body. "I can't move people directly, the same goes for any living thing. But I can move pretty much anything else. If it's particularly heavy, like the airplane and the bus, I have to be touching it to move it. Things like that significantly strain me when I lift them, both physically and mentally. After moving the airplane, and then the bus the next day, I was sore head to toe for almost a week."

Bokuto frowned and pulled Akaashi into his arms. "I didn't know that, Keiji. I'm sorry you were in so much pain."

Akaashi hugged Bokuto. "It was worth it since I got to meet you."

Kuroo made cooing noises. "You two are so sweet and mushy!"

Iwaizumi snorted. "You're one to talk. Pretty sure I heard you call Kenma 'kitten' a few minutes ago."

"What was that you said, Iwa-chan? I couldn't quite hear you over your sappy pet name," Kuroo said teasingly.

The whole group chuckled as they started to eat their lunch. 

Akaashi felt more relief than he expected now that all his friends knew his secret. And accepted him for it, more importantly. After lunch, he gave a further reveal of his powers by unpacking all the moving boxes with his mind. Oikawa and Iwaizumi were particularly impressed, since they had never seen anything like it before. And Akaashi found it kind of fun to show it off to an eager audience. 

Once the unpacking was finished, the group of friends left for the skate park.

  
  
  
  



	17. You Always Did Run Towards Trouble

The group of friends had walked together to the skate park.

Akaashi and Oikawa were skating together on the half pipe while Bokuto and Iwaizumi were watching them. Kuroo had somehow goaded them into being shirtless while they skated, and the sight of the two shirtless men had gathered a small audience of park goers. 

The two men were taking turns showing off their best tricks. Oikawa tried to do a blunt stall nose grab, but the board got away from him and he fell backwards. He did a tumbling roll and came to land on his back. Akaashi walked over and gave him a hand up. 

"Told you I'm a little rusty," Oikawa said, laughing lightly and putting an arm over Akaashi's shoulders. He then winked and held up a peace sign towards the small crowd that was watching them. 

Iwaizumi frowned in irritation. “Stop flirting with strangers, Tooru.”

“Don’t be  _ jealous _ . None of them compare to you,” Oikawa said playfully. Then he walked over and dramatically kissed Iwaizumi, pulling the now flustered man against his bare chest. 

Akaashi was still feeling competitive and didn’t want to be outdone. So he walked over to Bokuto and pressed himself against the man, putting his hands on either side of Bokuto's face when he kissed him. As he broke the kiss, he pulled Bokuto's lower lip between his teeth before letting it go and moving to step away.

But Bokuto caught Akaashi up in another kiss while reaching back and putting his hands into the man’s back pockets.

There were squeals from some of the people watching near the halfpipe. It made Iwaizumi and Akaashi blush, while Bokuto just chuckled at it. Oikawa seemed to like the attention, so he took to hanging on Iwaizumi and showing off his boyfriend in that way. 

The actions were not appreciated by Iwaizumi; he flicked Oikawa on the forehead.

Kuroo and Kenma were sitting on a bench nearby watching the drama unfold. Kenma had his head leaned against Kuroo's arm, and his hand holding onto the man’s wrist. They were both content just sitting there together and observing their friends. 

"Keiji seems really happy. He’s never had so many people that accept him for who he is, powers and all," Kenma said softly as he smiled.

Kuroo glanced at his boyfriend curiously. "Are you happy to have so many friends too?"

Kenma hummed thoughtfully. "It's not as terrible as I thought it would be."

Kuroo grinned at that. "Did you dread the future where you’d suddenly have to talk to people more often?"

"Not really. But I thought you in particular would be a lot more full of yourself. You're better in person than you were in visions,” Kenma replied. 

Kuroo chuckled softly and kissed the top of Kenma’s head. "I'm glad I'm better than you were expecting."

Kenma glanced up at Kuroo's face; his expression was sincere. "Meeting you was like finally coming home."

Before Kuroo could tear up or say something ridiculously sentimental, the sound of barking made Kenma jump. There was a large brown dog running away from its owner and heading right for the bench where they were sitting.

Kenma stood on the bench and fought against the urge to teleport away in front of everyone at the park. His face was pale; he had never liked dogs ever since the one that had chased him as a child, triggering his very first teleportation. "Kuro! Make it go away!" 

Kuroo hurried to stand up and leaned over to greet the dog, grabbing the leash attached to the animal’s collar. He walked the dog away from Kenma and over to where its owner was waiting.

Once the woman left with her dog, Kuroo walked back over to the bench where Kenma was still standing. He grinned at his boyfriend playfully. "Does my kitten not like dogs?" 

Kuroo’s face dropped when he looked at Kenma's expression; it was frozen in horror. Not only that, but his eyes were different. His pupils had become thin, cat-like slits. And his usually golden brown eyes were much more gold than brown. 

Kuroo's brows furrowed with worry. "Kenma? It's okay now. The dog’s gone." He went to take Kenma's hands and realized that the man was shaking. 

At the feel of Kuroo's hands on his, Kenma started whispering. "Death… death…"

Kuroo was starting to freak out a bit. He had never seen Kenma like this, and he didn't know what to do. He turned towards where Akaashi was and called out. "Keiji! Come here, quick! Something's wrong with Kenma!"

Akaashi skated over, followed by Bokuto, Oikawa and Iwaizumi. 

When Akaashi saw Kenma, he stepped off his board and stood in front of his friend. "He’s having a vision. A bad one, it looks like," he said, as he carefully pushed Kenma down to a sitting position. 

"How do we make it end?" Kuroo asked, desperate to stop his boyfriend from experiencing whatever was making him look so afraid. 

"We can't. It has to run its course," Akaashi replied softly. He had witnessed Kenma have many such visions. The really bad ones started at the end of high school; it was always unsettling to witness. He got down in front of Kenma and spoke gently. "What do you see, Kenma?"

Kenma's reply came strangled from his mouth. "Water… waves… onto land… death…"

"Sounds like a tsunami," Iwaizumi said from where he and Oikawa stood slightly behind Akaashi. 

Akaashi nodded and continued to softly talk to Kenma. "Where does it happen, Kenma? When?"

Kenma's voice was barely a whisper. "Kanagawa… today… soon…"

Akaashi's face grew determined as he stood up and turned towards the others. "I have to go there. I might be able to stop the wave."

Bokuto frowned and reached for Akaash’s hand. "That seems really dangerous."

Akaashi squeezed Bokuto’s hand reassuringly. "I have to go. If I don't try to save them, I'll feel like their deaths are my fault."

Oikawa commented suddenly; his voice was nervous. "Just because you know it's coming doesn't mean you can stop it. It's a tsunami, not a bus or an airplane."

Iwaizumi nodded and gave a frown as he spoke. "I have to agree. I think it’s too dangerous."

Akaashi didn't listen to them. Instead, he looked desperately at Bokuto. "Trust me, please. I'll come back to you. But I have to go. I have to try to help."

Bokuto bit his lip. After a long pause, he pulled Akaashi into his arms for a tight hug. "Please be careful, Keiji. I love you so much."

"I love you too," Keiji replied right before kissing the man. He then turned to Kuroo. “The vision should pass soon. Just stay with him and let him know you’re there,” he said quickly. Then he turned and skated off in a hurry.

Iwaizumi and Oikawa were both frowning. Oikawa whispered to Iwaizumi. "I don't have a good feeling about this, Iwa-chan." Iwaizumi nodded silently and crossed his arms. 

Kenma was still stuck in the vision. Kuroo held both of his hands and spoke soothing words. Kenma's own hands were clammy and his forehead had beads of sweat dripping down; his stress and fear were palpable. 

Kenma tried to whisper something but it wasn't audible. Kuroo leaned his ear close to Kenma's mouth and listened carefully.

"Don't let… Keiji… go there…"

  
  
  



	18. The Stregth Inside Me Against The Sea

Akaashi briefly stopped at his apartment after he left the park. Once he had his black clothes and white kitsune mask on, he ran outside and shot into the sky on his skateboard. He willed it to move faster, and faster, and faster. It didn't take long for him to reach Kanagawa prefecture.

He could already see the water pulling back from the shore. It was a sure sign that a tsunami was imminent. There were many people out on the beach: families, children, elderly folks. He flew past them and went out over the water just as a tsunami alert started sounding. Thinking about all the people on the beach made him steel his resolve as he rushed further toward the open sea; he was desperate to buy them time to evacuate. 

Soon he could see it. There was a giant wave, miles long in both directions.

Without hesitation, he moved to hover just ahead of the tall wave. He shoved both hands through it and sent the water back and upwards. The upflow of the wave spread out to his sides where he urged the panel of water to grow wider and wider. As his wall of water spread further, it also grew taller. It looked like an enormous curtain spread out across the horizon. 

The force of the water was incredible. It was all Akaashi could do to keep himself steady on his board and keep spreading the wall further and further as he tried to hold back the will of the sea. 

A splitting headache soon started, causing him to grimace in pain. His arms and legs shook violently from the exertion of using his abilities to such an extreme extent. If he wasn't already soaked from the water, his own sweat would have drenched him. His stomach was sick and nausea was grasping up his throat. His lungs felt squeezed; he couldn't get a full breath. He could feel the warmth of the blood coming from his nose and could taste it in his mouth as well. His vision was getting blurry as dizziness settled over him.

It was like the pressure of the sea had landed squarely on his body. 

Akaashi didn't know how much longer he could redirect the wave. For miles in either direction, the water flowed high into the sky. This was the single most difficult thing he had ever tried to do; a small part of him was afraid that it was also the last thing he would ever do. 

Suddenly he felt something inside himself shatter. He felt a snap of force, like a giant invisible shockwave had resonated through him. The water wall broke free of his hold and started to fall back down in a heavy rain.

Akaashi's vision went black. He could feel himself dropping down towards the sea below; it seemed like a very long fall, but at the same time it felt like nothing at all. He couldn't comprehend what was happening, as though his mind wouldn’t work right. A fear like none he had ever known before grasped his heart.

As his body crashed into the raging water below, strong currents tossed him around beneath the waves. He was pulled under the surface. The last thing that he was somewhat aware of was that he was sinking deeper and deeper into the sea.

  
  
  



	19. When The Worst Possibility Had Already Happened

Kenma's foresight finally released him; he gasped as his upper body fell forward into Kuroo's waiting arms. 

His hands were trembling and he was breathing heavily. Having that type of vision could be particularly unpleasant, because his body took on all the sensations of being where he saw he was in his mind. And in the last part of his vision, he had been deep underwater right alongside Akaashi. It had been horrible; both seeing his friend drowning, and experiencing it himself. 

His adrenaline was still racing as he pressed his face into Kuroo’s neck and adjusted to being back in his own body. It hadn’t been clear when it would happen, but he knew he needed to keep Akaashi from going to the sea no matter what. Otherwise, the worst possibility might come true. 

"I've got you, it's okay," Kuroo murmured while stroking Kenma's hair. He was relieved that Kenma was finally back and no longer looking so pained.

Bokuto was squatting in front of the bench next to Kuroo; his mind seemed like it was somewhere else and his eyes were unfocused. He was picking apart some dandelions that he held in his hands as a way to keep himself busy. All he could think about was Akaashi; what the man was doing at the moment, if he was okay, when he’d be back.

"You had us worried there for a minute," Oikawa said gently from where he was sitting beside  Kenma on the bench. “You were out of it for a good ten minutes.

As Kenma caught his breath, he leaned his head up and looked around. Worry crossed his features as he spoke. "Where’s Keiji?"

"He went to take on a tsunami," Iwaizumi said solemnly from where he sat on Kenma's other side. 

Kenma stood up angrily. "No. No! That stupid… fucking… thoughtless idiot!" 

Everyone else stood up as well when they realized how furious Kenma was in that moment. His whole demeanor had transformed and he looked a terrible sight; his gaze was sharp, his brows were furrowed, his teeth were barred, and his fingers were balled into fists. But underneath the anger was an overwhelming amount of fear; it could be seen deep in his eyes.

Oikawa and Iwaizumi glanced at each other with matching expressions of concern. 

Bokuto looked speechless and surprised. 

Kuroo was worried and serious as he studied Kenma’s face. 

There was probably no one who knew Kenma, aside from Akaashi, that had never seen him so openly upset. 

In a flash, Kenma’s eyes changed back into the mostly golden color with cat-like pupils. He was flipping through versions of the immediate future, desperate for one that would save his best friend. He did so for just under thirty seconds before he found a course of action to take.

Kenma took his phone, keys and Nintendo Switch out of his pockets, handing it all to Kuroo. Then he spoke quickly, giving the man instructions. "Call Suga with my phone. Tell him I'm coming to get him, and ask him about the witch doctor that he knows. Then go wait at the apartment. I'm going to get Keiji."

Before Kenma disappeared, he looked at Bokuto with a pained expression. "It might be too late. Prepare yourself for that." His voice cracked as he finished speaking. Tears were threatening to spill and he knew they wouldn't stop if he let them start. He took a deep breath and held it in, then he vanished. 

Bokuto’s mouth was open slightly and his face had taken on a pale color. He glanced at the ground and looked like he might start crying. He didn't want to believe that Akaashi might not be coming back.

Kuroo reached one hand out and set it on Bokuto’s shoulder as he flipped through Kenma’s phone with his other hand. His expression was both focused and grim as he scrolled to Suga’s name and hit the call button.

Oikawa and Iwaizumi both moved to comfort Bokuto so that Kuroo could focus on making the phone call to Suga.

They were all desperately hoping that Kenma had made it in time to save Akaashi. 


	20. Witch Doctors And Soul Searching

When Kenma reappeared, he was underwater. Right beside him was Akaashi's body; it was floating idly deep beneath the surface. Kenma wrapped his arms around his friend and they both vanished. 

They appeared in their living room. No one else had made it back yet, as less than a minute had passed since Kenma left the others at the park. It was better that way for now, though. Kenma needed to focus on the task at hand. He ignored his wet clothes and shivering body for the time being, worrying only about his friend. 

He laid Akaashi on the floor and started pressing rhythmically against the man’s chest. Then he plugged Akaashi's nose and blew air into the man’s mouth. He repeated it again, and again. 

After another minute, Akaashi's body finally coughed up water. His breathing was shallow after that, and his heartbeat was weak, but it was enough to give Kenma hope.

"You're such a fucking idiot, Keiji. Why’d you do that?" Kenma said as tears welled up in his eyes. But he didn’t have time to sit around and scold his friend; he disappeared, returning with Suga before ten seconds had passed. 

"What’s the name of the witch doctor and where can I find him, Suga?" Kenma asked quickly. 

Suga had his phone in his hand; he had just answered Kuroo's call before Kenma came to get him without explanation. He told Kuroo he was with Kenma already and hung up. "His name is Tendou Satori, he works at the central hospital in Tokyo.”

Kenma was gone immediately; he was determined to find Tendou and bring the man back quickly. There was no time to spare. 

Suga’s face paled as he looked down at Akaashi on the floor; he hurried to kneel down beside his friend and gently set his hand on the man’s chest. Akaashi was soaking wet, limp, and horribly bruised. 

Suga had no idea what had happened, but he couldn't sense Akaashi's soul. 

Suddenly, Kenma reappeared. He had a red haired man with him; the man looked very surprised, and it was likely that Kenma had taken him without bothering to say why. 

"Explain what's going on, please," Tendou said as he assessed the three men, wondering why he had been transported out of the cafeteria so suddenly. But he made an educated guess when he saw Akaashi's limp body on the floor. He stuck the spoon he had been using to eat his lunch into his back pocket and then kneeled beside Akaashi’s body, across from Suga. 

Kenma dropped to his knees at Akaashi's head. "He tried to hold back a tsunami with his telekinesis," he said, his voice edged with worry. 

Suga was surprised at that information and felt himself shudder at the thought of Akaashi battling the strength of a tsunami. 

Tendou's eyes widened; he looked both concerned and deeply interested. "My, my, my. It's a wonder he's still alive at all." As he held his hands above Akaashi's body, he chanted a few words. Then he began to recite the damage that he could see using the special vision that he had; his eyes had similar power to an MRI machine. "His bones are cracked in most places, totally crushed in some spots. His organs are all damaged and he’s bleeding internally. His eardrums have both burst and his brain’s bleeding in several spots. From the pressure of trying to hold the sea, I'd assume."

"Can you help him, Satori?" Suga asked, setting a hand on Akaashi's discolored arm that was black and blue from the damage beneath the skin. 

Tendou hummed affirmatively as his hands started glowing light purple; warmth flowed down over Akaashi's body from them. "I can heal his physical wounds, sure. But it seems like his soul’s missing. It likely separated from his body to avoid being completely crushed by the pressure. Souls are fickle and delicate, you know. And finding them isn’t my area of expertise."

Kenma was balling his fists so hard that his knuckles were white. He looked at Suga desperately and spoke in a trembling voice. "Can you find Keiji’s soul?"

Suga had never heard such depth of emotion conveyed in Kenma's words. It made the fear and sadness in his own heart grasp him more intensely. He took a slow breath and looked back down at Akaashi. "I'll do anything I can to find him. I’ll try sending a beacon out. If he’s lost, that might help him find his way back."

Tendou finished healing Akaashi's body, then stood up. He glanced at Kenma and tilted his head. His voice was soft and genuine when he spoke. "I’ve done what I can. I really hope your friend pulls through. Would you please return me to the hospital now?" 

Kenma stood and grabbed Tendou's arm, then transported them both back to the hospital. He quickly returned alone and moved to sit above Akaashi's head, pulling it up into his lap.

Suga had one hand on Akaashi's forehead and one hand over the man’s heart. He was whispering a language Kenma didn't know. The room grew colder than it had been just a moment before as a gentle breeze circled around them.

Suddenly, Akaashi's body started to glow. It was dim at first but became brighter as each second passed. There was also a pleasant warmth radiating from him. Finally, an intense light burst out from him, moving away from his body in every direction; it would travel far in search of his missing soul. 

  
  



	21. Come Back Home

Akaashi didn't know who he was or what he was. He also couldn't tell where he was, either. Or to be more accurate, it was like he was everywhere in the whole world at once. 

He could see oceans filled with sea creatures, as if he was looking out from each one's eyes; he was sharks, orcas, dolphins, krill, lobsters, shrimp, and every other animal that lived in the water.

He walked the deck of every ship and wandered every submarine, as if he were each captain and all the crew members at the same time. He navigated through a storm in one sea and steered through calm waters in another. 

He strolled around lakes and jumped off waterfalls in bodies that were unfamiliar to him; he was each member of countless friend groups. He was teaching a friend to swim, but he was also the one learning. He was spreading out a picnic blanket while on a date, and he was all the ants crawling onto the blanket right after. 

He was flying above dark waves and different landscapes as millions of different birds. 

He was swimming through countless clear rivers and murky swamps as though he were every fish and frog. He was the child who caught a crawdad at one of those rivers, while also pinching that same child as the crawdad himself. 

He was holding his breath while sitting at the bottom of a public swimming pool, watching the ripples of the water above him. But he was also looking down from above the surface of that same pool, calling to the person at the bottom.

He was riding a wave as a woman on a surfboard; but he was also her friend on the beach, waving to her. 

He was rushing through a forest as a herd of deer, and jumping from rock to rock as the mountain lion hunting those same deer. 

He was crawling through a dense jungle as bugs, lizards and snakes. In that same jungle, he was pulling himself up by vines and sitting on mossy branches as monkeys and gorillas.

He was scaling the face of a cliff as a mountain goat, looking back down at the valley below. 

He was walking through the tall grass of a prairie as a herd of giraffes. He was also every fly that was swarming around the large animals.

He saw a gazelle die to feed a lion and her cubs. He died as the gazelle and ate as the lions. 

He was climbing a snowy mountain as a group of hikers, and he was the bear hibernating in a cave on that same mountain.

He saw the dry sand of desserts, crawling as tarantulas and scorpions alike. 

He felt the wet sand of beaches as a pack of seals that were having a nap; he also walked those same beaches as a photographer, capturing images of the animals in their natural environment. 

He was each of a group of baby lizards that hatched from their eggs and started their lives. And he was the bird that flew off with one of the baby lizards.

He observed children tossing rocks to skip them across the surface of a pond as the adult supervising them, but he was also each of the children.

He was a herd of elephants during a stampede.

He was running as a pack of wolves with careless abandon, and he was the rabbit that hid from them as they passed. 

He watched a litter of kittens be born, but experienced the labor of the mother cat as well. 

He was a stray dog that found a new home, and he was a different dog that got hit by a car.

He looked out his window as birds flocked together in the sky, from where he was sitting inside the passenger seat of a car. He also saw that car from the eyes of every bird in the flock. 

He was every person, in every city and town. He sat in every room and walked through every yard. 

He passed through churches, temples, holy grounds. 

He saw the face of every human and looked out from the eyes of each one as well. 

He felt love, anger, sadness, happiness, surprise, disgust, and fear all at once. 

He watched a thousand die and a thousand be born. 

He saw countless acts of kindness and many unspeakable atrocities. 

He felt one parent's love; he felt another parent’s neglect. 

Everything blurred together. He felt everything at once and nothing at all. He wasn't sure if he could breath. It was too much to process, and he didn't understand what was going on. He didn't know what he was; human or animal, or even alive at all? He was unsure of where he had really been or where he should actually be.

All the things he saw started swirling and then faded. He couldn't handle the overload of information anymore. He wanted it to stop; he needed it to end. He felt he was going to lose control any moment now. He was ready to give up.

Suddenly, he felt a wave of warm light; it was familiar and safe. It felt like love and friendship and it seemed like it was coming from where he should be. Right when he thought that, his soul came back together from where it had scattered across the world.

He found himself standing in his own living room and saw his own body laying on the floor. 

Bokuto was crying with his head pressed to Akaashi’s chest. 

Suga was on Akaashi’s other side, blinking back tears. 

Kenma was on his knees at Akaashi's head, crying silently as he pressed his own forehead to Akaashi's; his hair, still wet from being in the sea earlier, was draped around their faces.

Kuroo was sitting behind Kenma while rubbing circles on his boyfriend's back. His face was worried and his usually easy going grin was pulled into a frown. 

Iwaizumi and Oikawa sat on the edge of the coffee table. Oikawa's hands were over his face and he was crying softly. Iwaizumi had an arm around his boyfriend; his own expression was very grim.

Akaashi remembered what happened then; it came rushing back to him. And he felt incredibly guilty for putting his friends through losing him. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. 

When he opened his eyes, he was back in his body. He lifted a hand to Bokuto's cheek, while he put his other hand on top of Kenma's head. 

Bokuto sat up and grabbed Akaashi's hand; his voice was desperate and hopeful. "Keiji?"

Akaashi nodded and gave a weak smile.

Kenma pulled his forehead up enough to look into Akaashi's eyes. "Don't ever do that again,” he said in a whisper that sounded more pleading and less stern than intended. 

"I won't," Akaashi said softly. His throat felt dry and raw.

Bokuto pulled Akaashi up into his arms. Akaashi wrapped his own arms tightly around Bokuto's waist. They held each other close. 

"I'm so sorry, Koutarou. I was stupid and selfish," Akaashi said quietly.

Bokuto just kissed him softly in response. 

"You  _ were _ stupid… but not completely selfish. You saved a lot of people," Iwaizumi said gruffly from where he sat.

Suga clicked his tongue and wiped tears away. "Very stupid, regardless. You almost died, Keiji. In fact, you pretty much  _ were _ dead. I wasn't sure your soul would come back after I sent the beacon to call for it."

"So that was your light I felt? Thank you, Suga. It brought me back here," Akaashi said from within Bokuto's strong embrace. 

"We were really worried, Keiji. Maybe listen to your friends next time," Oikawa said firmly as he wiped his tears on his sleeves. 

"I should have listened, and I shouldn't have rushed off alone. I'm really sorry," Akaashi said, lowering his eyes. 

Bokuto put his hands on Akaashi's face, lifting it and looked into the man’s eyes. "Just don't leave me again, Keiji. I don't want to live without you."

Akaashi nodded and blinked away tears. "I'll stay by your side, Koutarou. I promise."

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This whole chapter is basically a dream I once had about dying so welcome to my brain.


	22. The End Of This Story (Is Only The Beginning)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to LollyBellaYuki54 for commenting along through all the chapters while I was doing the revised version of this fic. I really appreciated your encouragement! ^_^

Despite Akaashi's quickened physical healing, thanks to Tendou, his body and mind were still worn out. He ended up sleeping more than one full day once he had returned to his body. He had some very strange dreams during that long sleep; flashbacks of when his soul had been scattered around the world. 

It had been a few days since the tsunami incident; Akaashi and all his friends were gathered in the living room, playing a video game after dinner. 

Akaashi was sitting on Bokuto's lap, with Kuroo and Kenma on his left and Iwaizumi and Oikawa on his right. Daichi and Suga were on the floor in front of the coffee table. 

Kenma had just won another round of Crash Team Racing, to no one's surprise. 

Suga turned around to give Kenma some friendly harassment, but he ended up looking at Akaashi and Bokuto instead. His eyes were wide and surprised as a smile spread across his face. He cleared his throat. "Keiji. You’re, uh, floating."

Akaashi looked down and saw that Suga’s words were true. He realized that he and Bokuto were indeed floating in the air, just half a foot up off the couch. 

Everyone turned to look at the pair with varying degrees of surprise and wonder.

Kenma hummed and spoke casually, giving off his usual unimpressed air. "You can lift living things now, it seems."

Akaashi couldn't help the smile that spread across his face. He had always wanted to be able to lift living things; mostly because he wanted to be able to fly. He experimentally tried to lift everyone in the room, and found that he was able to lift all his friends into the air. 

Kenma clung to Kuroo, who chuckled and pulled him close. "No, put me down Keiji," he ordered as he tightly gripped Kuroo.

Akaashi smiled playfully as he set Kenma and Kuroo back down. 

Oikawa was flapping his arms and kicking his legs, trying to fly around the room but not having much success. 

Iwaizumi had crossed his arms behind his head and was relaxing in mid air. 

Suga was giggling and spinning himself around in circles while nudging Daichi each time he came back to face the man, making his boyfriend spin as well. 

Daichi looked like the spinning might be making him nauseous. 

Akaashi pulled Bokuto against himself as they floated a few feet up from the couch; his eyes were bright with excitement. "Will you go flying with me tonight?"

Bokuto nodded; his features were equally thrilled. "Definitely!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading. 
> 
> (The next chapter is a link to the art for this fic)


	23. Artwork!

[click here for art](https://spacejammie2020.tumblr.com/post/632424996525965312/the-full-piece-for-ill-stay-by-your-side-done-by)

[follow the artist here, she is awesome](https://twitter.com/yna_arts?s=09)


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